FIRST `Winged' and `X'-shaped Radio Source Candidates
Abstract
A small number of double-lobed radio galaxies are found with an additional pair of extended low surface brightness `wings' of emission giving them a distinctive `X'-shaped appearance. One popular explanation for the unusual morphologies posits that the central supermassive black hole (SMBH)/accretion disk system underwent a recent realignment; in a merger scenario, the active lobes mark the post-merger axis of the resultant system. However, this and other interpretations are not well tested on the few (about one dozen) known examples. In part to remedy this deficiency, a large sample of winged and X-shaped radio sources is being compiled for a systematic study. An initial sample of 100 new candidates is described as well as some of the follow-up work being pursued to test the different scenarios.
Keywords
Cite
@article{arxiv.astro-ph/0612398,
title = {FIRST `Winged' and `X'-shaped Radio Source Candidates},
author = {C. C. Cheung and A. Springmann},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:astro-ph/0612398},
year = {2007}
}
Comments
2 pgs, 1 fig, To appear in "The Central Engine of Active Galactic Nuclei", ed. L. C. Ho and J.-M. Wang (San Francisco: ASP)