595 research outputs found
An Investigation of Gravitational Lensing in the Southern BL Lac PKS 0537-441
The BL-Lac family of active galaxies possess almost featureless spectra and
exhibit rapid variability over their entire spectral range. A number of models
have been developed to explain these extreme properties, several of which have
invoked the action of microlensing by sub-stellar mass objects in a foreground
galaxy; this not only introduces variability, but also amplifies an otherwise
normal quasar source. Here we present recent spectroscopy and photometry of the
southern BL Lac PKS 0537-441; with an inferred redshift of z~0.9 it represents
one of the most distant and most luminous members of the BL Lac family. The
goal of the observations was not only to confirm the redshift of PKS~0537-441,
but also to determine the redshift of a putative galaxy along the line of sight
to the BL-Lac; it has been proposed that this galaxy is the host of
microlensing stars that account for PKS 0537-441's extreme properties. While
several observations have failed to detect any extended emission in PKS
0537-441, the HST imaging data presented here indicate the presence of a
galactic component, although we fail to identify any absorption features that
reveal the redshift of the emission. It is also noted that PKS 0537-441 is
accompanied by several small, but extended companions, located a few arcseconds
from the point-like BL-Lac source. Two possibilities present themselves; either
they represent true companions of PKS 0537-441, or are themselves
gravitationally lensed images of more distant sources.Comment: 13 Pages with 4 Figures; Accepted for Publication by the
Astrophysical Journa
The Properties of the Radio-Selected 1Jy Sample of BL Lacertae Objects
We present new optical and near-IR spectroscopy as well as new high dynamic
range, arcsecond-resolution VLA radio maps of BL Lacs from the complete
radio-selected "1 Jansky" (1Jy) sample (RBLs) for which such data were not
previously available. Unlike BL Lacs from the complete X-ray-selected Einstein
Medium Sensitivity Survey (EMSS) sample (XBLs), most RBLs possess weak but
moderately luminous emission lines. And whereas nearly all XBLs have extended
power levels consistent with FR-1s, more than half of the RBLs have extended
radio power levels too luminous to be beamed FR-1 radio galaxies. In fact, we
find evidence for and examples of three distinct mechanisms for creating the BL
Lac phenomenon in the 1Jy sample: beamed FR-1s, beamed FR-2s and possibly a few
gravitationally-lensed quasars. The v/v_max determined for the 1Jy sample is
0.614+/-0.047, which is markedly different from the negative evolution seen in
the EMSS and other XBL samples. A correlation between logarithmic X-ray to
radio flux ratio and v/v_max is observed across the EMSS and 1Jy samples, from
negative evolution in the more extreme XBLs to positive evolution in the more
extreme RBLs. There is evidence that the selection criteria chosen by Stickel
et al. eliminates some BL Lac objects from the 1Jy sample, although how many is
unknown. And several objects currently in the sample have exhibited strong
emission lines in one or more epochs, suggesting they should be reclassified as
FSRQs. However these selection effects cannot account for the observed
discrepancy in XBL and RBL properties. From these observational properties we
conclude that RBLs and XBLs cannot be related by viewing angle alone, and that
RBLs are more closely related to FSRQs.Comment: 29 pages, 47 figures, accepted A
Deep Chandra and multicolor HST observations of the jets of 3C 371 and PKS 2201+044
This paper presents multiwavelength imaging and broad-band spectroscopy of
the relativistic jets in the two nearby radio galaxies 3C 371 and PKS 2201+044,
acquired with Chandra, HST, VLA, and Merlin. Radio polarization images are also
available. The two sources stand out as "intermediate'' between FRIs and FRIIs;
their cores are classified as BL Lacs, although broad and narrow optical
emission lines were detected at times. The multiwavelength images show jet
morphologies with the X-ray emission peaking closer to the nucleus than the
longer wavelengths. The jets are resolved at all wavelengths in a direction
perpendicular to the jet axis. The jets SEDs are consistent with a single
spectral component from radio to X-rays, interpreted as synchrotron emission.
The SEDs show a progressive softening from the inner to the outer regions of
the jet, indicating that the electron break energy moves to lower energies with
distance from the core. Overall, the X-ray and multiwavelength properties of
the jets of 3C 371 and PKS 2201+044 appear intermediate between those of FRIs
and FRIIs.Comment: Accepted for publication in ApJ; 28 pages (emulateapj5), 17 figure
Neutral Hydrogen 21cm Absorption at Redshift 0.673 towards 1504+377
We detect the 21 cm line of neutral hydrogen in absorption at a redshift of
0.673 towards the 1 Jy radio source 1504+377. The 1504+377 radio source is
located toward the center of what appears to be an inclined disk galaxy at z =
0.674. The 21 cm absorption line shows multiple velocity components over a
velocity range of about 100 km sec, with a total HI column density:
N(HI) = cm. The
velocity-integrated optical depth of this system is the largest yet seen for
redshifted HI 21 cm absorption line systems (Carilli 1995). The 21 cm
absorption line is coincident in redshift with a previously detected broad
molecular absorption line system (Wiklind and Combes 1996). We do not detect HI
21 cm absorption associated with the narrow molecular absorption line system at
z = 0.67150, nor do we detect absorption at these redshifts by the 18 cm lines
of OH, nor by the 2 cm transition of HCO. There is no evidence for a bright
optical AGN in 1504+377, suggesting significant obscuration through the disk --
a hypothesis supported by the strong absorption observed. The 1504+377 system
resembles the ``red quasar'' PKS 1413+135, which has been modeled as a
optically obscured AGN with a very young radio jet in the center of a gas rich
disk galaxy (Perlman et al. 1996). The presence of very bright radio jets at
the centers of these two disk galaxies presents a challenge to unification
schemes for extragalactic radio sources and to models for the formation of
radio loud AGN.Comment: 17 pages, postscrip
A Uniform Analysis of the Ly-alpha forest at z = 0 - 5: I. The sample and distribution of clouds at z > 1.7
We present moderate resolution data for 39 QSOs at z 2 obtained at
the Multiple Mirror Telescope. These data are combined with spectra of
comparable resolution of 60 QSOs with redshifts greater than 1.7 found in the
literature to investigate the distribution of Ly-alpha forest lines in redshift
and equivalent width. We find a value for , the parameter describing
the number distribution of Ly-alpha forest lines in redshift, of
for lines stronger than a rest equivalent width of 0.32 , in good
agreement with some previous studies. The Kolmogorov-Smirnov test was applied
to the data and it is found that this single power law is a good fit over the
relevant redshift ranges. Simulations of the Lyman alpha forest were performed
to determine the completeness of the line lists and to test how well the
analysis the underlying line statistics, given this level of completeness.Comment: minor corrections to text, 37 Latex pages, 11 encapsulated Postscript
figures, uses emulateapj.sty, To appear in the Sept. 2000 ApJS, line lists
and spectra available at http://qso.as.arizona.edu/~jscott/Spectra/index.htm
The extragalactic background and its fluctuations in the far-infrared wavelengths
A Cosmic Far-InfraRed Background (CFIRB) has long been predicted that would
traces the intial phases of galaxy formation. It has been first detected by
Puget et al.(1996) using COBE data and has been later confirmed by several
recent studies (Fixsen et al. 1998, Hauser et al. 1998, Lagache et al. 1999).
We will present a new determination of the CFIRB that uses for the first time,
in addition to COBE data, two independent gas tracers: the HI survey of
Leiden/Dwingeloo (hartmann, 1998) and the WHAM H survey (Reynolds et
al 1998). We will see that the CFIRB above 100 micron is now very well
constrained. The next step is to see if we can detect its fluctuations. To
search for the CFIRB fluctuations, we have used the FIRBACK observations.
FIRBACK is a deep cosmological survey conducted at 170 micron with ISOPHOT
(Dole et al., 2000). We show that the emission of unresolved extra-galactic
sources clearly dominates, at arcminute scales, the background fluctuations in
the lowest galactic emission regions. This is the first detection of the CFIRB
fluctuations.Comment: To appear in "ISO Surveys of a Dusty Universe", Workshop at Ringberg
Castle, November 8 - 12, 199
Magnetic Fields in Quasar Cores II
Multi-frequency polarimetry with the Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA)
telescope has revealed absolute Faraday Rotation Measures (RMs) in excess of
1000 rad/m/m in the central regions of 7 out of 8 strong quasars studied (e.g.,
3C 273, 3C 279, 3C 395). Beyond a projected distance of ~20 pc, however, the
jets are found to have |RM| < 100 rad/m/m. Such sharp RM gradients cannot be
produced by cluster or galactic-scale magnetic fields, but rather must be the
result of magnetic fields organized over the central 1-100 pc. The RMs of the
sources studied to date and the polarization properties of BL Lacs, quasars and
galaxies are shown to be consistent so far with the predictions of unified
schemes. The direct detection of high RMs in these quasar cores can explain the
low fractional core polarizations usually observed in quasars at centimeter
wavelengths as the result of irregularities in the Faraday screen on scales
smaller than the telescope beam. Variability in the RM of the core is reported
for 3C 279 between observations taken 1.5 years apart, indicating that the
Faraday screen changes on that timescale, or that the projected superluminal
motion of the inner jet components samples a new location in the screen with
time. Either way, these changes in the Faraday screen may explain the dramatic
variability in core polarization properties displayed by quasars.Comment: Accepted to the ApJ. 27 pages, 9 figures including figure 6 in colo
The extinction law in high redshift galaxies
We estimate the dust extinction laws in two intermediate redshift galaxies.
The dust in the lens galaxy of LBQS1009-0252, which has an estimated lens
redshift of zl~0.88, appears to be similar to that of the SMC with no
significant feature at 2175 A. Only if the lens galaxy is at a redshift of
zl~0.3, completely inconsistent with the galaxy colors, luminosity or location
on the fundamental plane, can the data be fit with a normal Galactic extinction
curve. The dust in the zl=0.68 lens galaxy for B0218+357, whose reddened image
lies behind a molecular cloud, requires a very flat ultraviolet extinction
curve with (formally) R(V)=12 +- 2. Both lens systems seem to have unusual
extinction curves by Galactic standards.Comment: 15 pages, 3 figures. ApJ in pres
FIRBACK Source Counts and Cosmological Implications
FIRBACK is a one of the deepest surveys performed at 170 microns with ISOPHOT
onboard ISO, and is aimed at the study of cosmic far infrared background
sources. About 300 galaxies are detected in an area of four square degrees, and
source counts present a strong slope of 2.2 on an integral "logN-logS" plot,
which cannot be due to cosmological evolution if no K-correction is present.
The resolved sources account for less than 10% of the Cosmic Infrared
Background at 170 microns. In order to understand the nature of the sources
contributing to the CIB, and to explain deep source counts at other
wavelengths, we have developed a phenomenological model, which constrains in a
simple way the luminosity function evolution with redshift, and fits all the
existing deep source counts from the mid-infrared to the submillimetre range.
Images, materials and papers available on the FIRBACK web:
http://wwwfirback.ias.u-psud.fr wwwfirback.ias.u-psud.frComment: proceedings of "ISO Surveys of a Dusty Universe", eds. D. Lemke, M.
Stickel, K. Wilke, Ringberg, 8-12 Nov 1999, to appear in Springer 'Lecture
Notes of Physics'. 8 pages, 7 eps figures, .sty include
- âŠ