The X-ray jets of active galaxies

Jet physics is again flourishing as a result of Chandra’s ability to resolve high-energy emission from the radio-emitting structures of active galaxies and separate it from the X-ray-emitting thermal environments of the jets. These enhanced capabilities have coincided with an increasing interest in the link between the growth of super-massive black holes and galaxies, and an appreciation of the likely importance of jets in feedback processes. I review the progress that has been made using Chandra and XMM-Newton observations of jets and the medium in which they propagate, addressing several important questions, including: Are the radio structures in a state of minimum energy? Do powerful large-scale jets have fast spinal speeds? What keeps jets collimated? Where and how does particle acceleration occur? What is jet plasma made of? What does X-ray emission tell us about the dynamics and energetics of radio plasma/gas interactions? Is a jet’s fate determined by the central engine?     

Generation of resonance transition emissions in the solar atmosphere

We derive formulas for the radio flux generated in solar flares by the resonance transition mechanism. This mechanism is shown to produce the observed decimeter-wave emission in continuum radio bursts at a level of small-scale irregularities of ～10^?6–10^?7. Thus, an analysis of continuum decimeter emission offers a unique opportunity to study small-scale turbulence in solar flares.     

Doppler boosting, superluminal motion, and the kinematics of AGN jets

We discuss results from a decade long program to study the fine-scale structure and the kinematics of relativistic AGN jets with the aim of better understanding the acceleration and collimation of the relativistic plasma forming AGN jets. From the observed distribution of brightness temperature, apparent velocity, flux density, time variability, and apparent luminosity, the intrinsic properties of the jets including Lorentz factor, luminosity, orientation, and brightness temperature are discussed. Special attention is given to the jet in M87, which has been studied over a wide range of wavelengths and which, due to its proximity, is observed with excellent spatial resolution. Most radio jets appear quite linear, but we also observe curved non-linear jets and non-radial motions. Sometimes, different features in a given jet appear to follow the same curved path but there is evidence for ballistic trajectories as well. The data are best fit with a distribution of Lorentz factors extending up to γ∼30 and intrinsic luminosity up to ∼10²⁶ W Hz⁻¹. In general, gamma-ray quasars may have somewhat larger Lorentz factors than non gamma-ray quasars. Initially the observed brightness temperature near the base of the jet extend up to ∼5×10¹³ K which is well in excess of the inverse Compton limit and corresponds to a large excess of particle energy over magnetic energy. However, more typically, the observed brightness temperatures are ∼2×10¹¹ K, i.e., closer to equipartition.     

Circular Polarization and Magnetic Fields in Jet Models

The detection of circular polarization in compact synchrotron sources provides new insights into magnetic field configurations and the low-energy population of electrons in relativistic jets. Conversion of linear to circular polarization can be stimulated by Faraday rotation or turbulence in the source itself. A detailed model for the properties of the radio emission of Sgr A^* in the galactic center is presented.     

VLBI observations of turbulence in the inner solar wind

I discuss the use of Very Long Baseline Interferometer (VLBI) phase scintillations to probe the conditions of plasma turbulence in the solar wind. Specific results from 5.0 and 8.4 GHz observations with the Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA) are shown. There are several advantages of phase scintillation measurements. They are sensitive to fluctuations on scales of hundreds to thousands of kilometers, much larger than those probed by IPS intensity scintillations. In addition, with the frequency versatility of the VLBA one can measure turbulence from the outer corona 5–10R to well past the perihelion approach of the Helios spacecraft. This permits tests of the consistency of radio propagation and direct in-situ measurements of turbulence. Such a comparison is made in the present paper. Special attention is dedicated to measuring the dependence of the normalization coefficient of the density power spectrum,C _N ² on distance from the sun. Our results are consistent with the contention published several years ago by Aaron Roberts, that there is insufficient turbulence close to the sun to account for the heating and acceleration of the solar wind. In addition, an accurate determination of theC _N ² (R) relationship could aid the detection of transients in the solar wind.     

A Unified View of Relativistic Jets

I summarize here recent work on the physical conditions in blazar jets including the comparison between emission regions at subparsec scales (10¹⁶⁻¹⁷ cm) and at very large scales (10²²⁻²⁴ cm) recently detected in X-rays by Chandra. The jet properties at both scales together with those of the presumed associated accretion disk (10¹⁴⁻¹⁵ cm) suggest the possibility of a unified scenario for the origin and propagation of jets in strong radio sources.     

An Upper Limit on Nickel Overabundance in the Supercritical Accretion Disk Wind of SS 433 from X-ray Spectroscopy

We analyze a long (with a total exposure time of 120 ks) X-ray observation of the unique Galactic microquasar SS 433 carried out by the XMM-Newton space observatory with the goal of searching for the fluorescent line of neutral (or weakly ionized) nickel at energy 7.5 keV. We consider two models for the formation of fluorescent lines in the spectrum of SS 433: (1) through the reflection of radiation from a putative central X-ray source off the optically thick neutral gas of the supercritical disk “funnel” walls; and (2) due to the scattering of the radiation coming from the hottest parts of the jets in the optically thin wind of the system. We show that for these two cases the flux of the Ni I K_α fluorescent line is expected to be 0.45 of the flux of the Fe I K_α fluorescent line at 6.4 keV for the relative nickel overabundance Z_Ni/Z = 10 observed in the jets of SS 433. For the continuum model without the absorption edge of neutral iron, we have found an upper limit on the flux of the narrow Ni I K_α fluorescent line of 0.9 × 10^?5 phot s^?1 cm^?2 (90% confidence level). In the continuum model with the absorption edge we have determined an upper limit on the flux of the Ni I K_α line at the level of 2.5×10^?5 phot s^?1 cm^?2. At the same time, the flux of the fluorescent iron line has been measured to be 9.9 _8.4 ^11.2 × 10^?5 phot s^?1 cm^?2. This result implies that the nickel overabundance in the accretion disk wind should be at least a factor of 1.5 times smal than the corresponding nickel overabundance observed in the jets of SS 433.     

Host galaxies and the unification of radio-loud AGN

Our HST WFPC2 survey of 110 BL Lac objects, from six complete X-ray-, radio-, and optically-selected catalogs, probes the host galaxies of low-luminosity radio sources in the redshift range 0<z<1.35. The host galaxies are luminous ellipticals, well matched in radio power and galaxy magnitude to FR I radio galaxies. Similarly, the host galaxies of high luminosity quasars occupy the same region of this plane as FR II radio galaxies (matched in redshift). This strongly supports the unification of radio-loud AGN, and suggests that studying blazars at high redshift is a proxy for investigating less luminous (to us) but intrinsically identical radio galaxies, which are harder to find at high z. Accordingly, the difference between low-power jets in BL Lac objects and high-power jets in quasars can then be related to the FR I/FR II dichotomy; and the evolution of blazar host galaxies or their nuclei (jets) should correspond to the evolution of radio galaxies.     

3C 120 and the surrounding region of sky

Image processing performed on a series of photographs of the superluminal Seyfert galaxy, 3C 120, shows the outer optical disc to consist of fragmented segments generally pointing toward the centre. One long arm of peculiar, separated knots comes off to the W and SW. A peculiar companion is seen along the line of the NW radio jet. In the interior, optical jets are detected which are aligned along the direction of the outer radio jets. A region of the sky 45 ×; 25 degrees around 3C120 is investigated. It is found that:

1. A nebulous filament about 3/4 degree in length points to 3C 120.
2. Hydrogen clouds of redshiftz = ?130 and ?210 km s^?1 are situated at 3 and 1 degrees on either side of 3C 120.
3. Eleven low-surface-brightness galaxies with 4500 <z < 5300 km s^?1 fall within a radius of 8 degrees.
4. Seven quasars withz ? 1.35 and radio fluxesS _b ? 0.3 fall within a radius of 10 degrees.

It is concluded that the concentration of these objects in the vicinity of this unique, active galaxy has a negligible chance of being accidental and that all those objects of diverse redshift are at the same nearby distance. This smaller distance reduces the supposed superluminal motions in 3C 120 to quite precedented ejection velocities.     

New observations of the pulsar wind nebula in the supernova remnant CTB 80

We investigated the kinematics of the pulsar wind nebula (PWN) in the old supernova remnant CTB 80 using the Fabry-Perot interferometer of the 6-m Special Astrophysical Observatory telescope. In addition to the previously known expansion of the system of bright filaments with a velocity of 100–200 km s^?1, we detected weak high-velocity features in the Hα line at least up to velocities of 400–450 km s^?1. We analyzed the morphology of the PWN in the Hα, [S II], and [O III] lines using HST archival data and discuss its nature. The shape of the central filamentary shell, which is determined by the emission in the [O III] line and in the radio continuum, is shown to be consistent with the bow-shock model for a significant (about 60°) inclination of the pulsar’s velocity vector to the plane of the sky. In this case, the space velocity of the pulsar is twice as high as its tangential velocity, i.e., it reaches ?500 km s^?1, and PSR B1951+32 is the first pulsar whose radial velocity about 40 km s^?1 has been estimated from PWN observations. The shell-like Hα-structures outside the bow shock front in the east and the west could be associated with both the pulsar’s jets and the pulsar wind breakthrough due to the layered structure of the extended CTB 80 shell.     

Kinematics and Flare Properties of Radio-Loud CMEs

A detailed analysis of the characteristics of coronal mass ejections (CMEs) and flares associated with decameter-hectometer wavelength type-II radio bursts (hereafter DH-type-II radio bursts, DH-CMEs or radio-loud CMEs) observed in the period 1997??C?2008 is presented. A sample of 61 limb events is divided into two populations based on the residual acceleration: accelerating CMEs (a _r>0) and decelerating CMEs (a _r<0). We found that average speed (residual acceleration) of all limb DH-CMEs (called radio-loud CMEs) is nearly three (two) times greater than the average speed of the general population CMEs (radio-quiet CMEs). While the initial acceleration (a _i) of the accelerating DH-CMEs is smaller than that of decelerating DH-CMEs (0.79 and 1.62 km?s^?2, respectively), the average speed and magnitude of residual acceleration of the accelerating and decelerating DH-CMEs are similar (??V _CME??: 1254 km?s^?1 and 1303 km?s^?1; ??a _r??: 0.026 km?s^?2 and 0.028 km?s^?2, respectively). The accelerating DH-CMEs attain their peak speed at larger heights than decelerating DH-CMEs. A good positive and negative linear correlation for accelerating and decelerating DH-CMEs (R _a=0.74 and R _d=?0.77, respectively) is found. The flares associated with accelerating DH-CME events have longer rise times and decay times than flares of decelerating DH-CME. The accelerating and decelerating DH-CMEs events associated with DH-type-II bursts have similar ending frequencies. The analysis of time lags between DH-type-II start and the flare onset shows that the delays are longer in accelerating DH-CMEs than decelerating DH-CMEs (P??7 %). However, the time lags between the DH-type-II start and the CMEs onset are similar.     

Theoretical overview on high-energy emission in microquasars

Microquasar (MQ) jets are sites of particle acceleration and synchrotron emission. Such synchrotron radiation has been detected coming from jet regions of different spatial scales, which for the instruments at work nowadays appear as compact radio cores, slightly resolvedradio jets, or (very) extended structures (e.g. Mirabel and Rodríguez, 1999; Fender, 2001; Corbel et al., 2002). Because of the presence of relativistic particles and dense photon, magnetic and matter fields, these outflows are also the best candidates to generate the very high-energy (VHE) gamma-rays detected coming from two of these objects, LS 5039 and LS I +61 303 (Aharonian, 2005; Aharonian et al., 2006a; and Albert, 2006, respectively), and may be contributing significantly to the X-rays emitted from the MQ core (e.g. Markoff et al., 2001; Bosch-Ramon et al., 2005a). In addition, beside electromagnetic radiation, jets at different scales are producing some amount of leptonic and hadronic cosmic rays (CR), and evidences of neutrino production in these objects may be eventually found. In this work, we review on the different physical processes that may be at work in or related to MQ jets. The jet regions capable to produce significant amounts of emission at different wavelengths have been reduced to the jet base, the jet at scales of the order of the size of the system orbital semi-major axis, the jet middle scales (the resolved radio jets), and the jet termination point. The surroundings of the jet could be sites of multiwavelength emission as well, deserving also an insight. We focus on those scenarios, either hadronic or leptonic, in which it seems more plausible to generate both photons from radio to VHE and high-energy neutrinos. We briefly comment as well on the relevance of MQ as possible contributors to the galactic CR in the GeV–PeV range.     

A comparison of high-energy events in the quiet Sun with solar flares

Observations of high-speed coronal clouds (OSO-7), flare ejecta (Skylab) and high-energy jets (HRTS) are compared. It is possible that the same physical mechanism - an expanding loop - which is responsible for the high speed jets (400 km sec^?1, 2.5 × 10²⁶ ergs) can also account for the high-speed coronal clouds (1300 km sec^?1, 4 × 10³⁰ ergs), which were correlated with a flare-connected spray. Field strength of 15 gauss and 2500 gauss are required for the jets and the sprays, respectively.     

Giant Radio Halos in Galaxy Clusters as Probes of Particle Acceleration in Turbulent Regions

Giant radio halos in galaxy clusters probe mechanisms of particle acceleration connected with cluster merger events. Shocks and turbulence are driven in the inter-galactic medium (IGM) during clusters mergers and may have a deep impact on the non-thermal properties of galaxy clusters. Models of turbulent (re)acceleration of relativistic particles allow good correspondence with present observations, from radio halos to γ-ray upper limits, although several aspects of this complex scenario still remain poorly understood.     

活动星系和类星体中的喷流（Ⅱ）

喷流的研究是天文学和天体物理学中最使人兴趣的课题之一。在本文中，陈述了河外射电源中喷流在现阶段的观测阶段，讨论了某些典型的高能天体中喷流的特性。第一部分所涉及的内容包括喷流的定义，产生和传播；也包括喷流的不对称性和统一的解释模式的讨论。     

Astrophysical Jets of Blazars and Microquasars

Some recent developments in the study of relativistic jets in active galactic nuclei and microquasars are reviewed. While it has been well established for some time that extragalactic jets found in radio galaxies, quasars, and BL Lac objects are the site of ultrarelativistic particle acceleration, the recent identification of the Galactic jet source and microquasar LS~5039 as a source of very-high-energy gamma-ray emission has underlined the striking similarity between the two types of astrophysical jet sources. In this paper, I will present an overview of the dominant radiation and particle acceleration processes and observational tests to distinguish between such processes. The wide-ranging analogies between Galactic and extragalactic jets, but also their distinct differences, in particular those caused by the presence of the companion star in Galactic microquasar systems, will be exposed.     

Is GRS 1915+105 A Microquasar?

The large mechanical luminosity of the jets of GRS 1915+105 should give rise to luminous emission regions, similar to those observed in radio galaxies, where the jets interact with the gas surrounding the source. However, no radio synchrotron emission of the expected morphology has been found. Here we present the results of a study suggesting that radio bremsstrahlung from the compressed and heated ISM in front of the jets should be detectable, while the synchrotron lobes may be too faint. We identify these jet impact sites with two well-known IRAS regions. This identification suggests a distance of GRS 1915+105 of 6.5± 1.6 kpc, significantly closer than the usually assumed distance of 11–12 kpc. We discuss the implications of this reduced distance estimate. The non-detection of the synchrotron radio lobes implies a significant fraction of non-radiating particles, possibly protons, in the jets. The apparent motion of small-scale jet components is not superluminal, so if superluminal motion is required for an object to be termed a microquasar, GRS 1915+105 actually does not qualify. The mass of the black hole in the system is increased to 21± 9 M_⊙, while the mechanical luminosity of the jets is reduced to 14% of the Eddington luminosity.     

Formation of SCR energy spectra during stochastic acceleration with allowance for Coulomb losses

The stochastic acceleration of heavy ions by Alfvén turbulence is considered with allowance for Coulomb losses. The pattern of energy dependence of these losses gives rise to characteristic features in the energy spectra of the accelerated particles at energies of the order of several MeV nucleon^?1. The manifestation of these features in the spectra is sensitive to the temperature and density of the medium, which can serve as a basis for plasma diagnostics in the flare region. Some impulsive solar energetic particle events during which features in the spectra of ³He and ⁴He were observed are considered as an example.