Jets in active galactic nuclei

Abstract

The jets of active galactic nuclei can carry a large fraction of the accreted power of the black hole system into interstellar and even extragalactic space. They radiate profusely from radio to X-ray and γ-ray frequencies. In the most extreme cases, the outward flow speeds correspond to high Lorentz factors that can reach 40 or more. This chapter displays images at various wavebands as well as light curves and continuum spectra that illustrate the variability with location, time, and frequency of the emission from compact, parsec-, and subparsec-scale jets. It presents a physical framework for investigating many aspects of the structure and dynamical processes from such data. © 2010 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.