Related papers: Quasar emission lines as probes of orientation: im…
We present a catalog of 5039 broad absorption line (BAL) quasars (QSOs) in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) Data Release 5 (DR5) QSO catalog that have absorption troughs covering a continuous velocity range >= 2000 km/s. We have fit…
The origin of broad-absorption-line quasars (BAL QSOs) is still an open issue. Accounting for ~20% of the QSO population, these objects present broad absorption lines in their optical spectra generated from outflows with velocities up to…
We have built a sample of 74 radio-selected broad absorption line quasars from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Data Release 5 (SDSS DR5) and Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty Centimeters (FIRST), along with a well matched sample of 74…
Broad absorption lines (BALs) found in a significant fraction of quasar spectra identify high-velocity outflows that might be present in all quasars and could be a major factor in feedback to galaxy evolution. Understanding the nature of…
Various unification schemes interpret the complex phenomenology of quasars and luminous active galactic nuclei (AGN) in terms of a simple picture involving a central black hole, an accretion disc and an associated outflow. Here, we continue…
We present an observational study of 22 broad absorption line quasars (BAL QSOs) at $3\lesssim z \lesssim5$ based on optical/near-IR spectroscopy, aiming to investigate quasar winds and their effects. The near-IR spectroscopy covers the…
We recently presented radio observations of a large sample of radio-loud broad absorption line (BAL) quasars from the SDSS and FIRST surveys, as well as a well matched sample of unabsorbed quasars, primarily to measure their radio spectral…
Broad absorption line (BAL) quasars probe the high velocity gas ejected by luminous accreting black holes. BAL variability timescales place constraints on the size, location, and dynamics of the emitting and absorbing gas near the…
Broad absorption lines (BALs) are present in the spectra of ~20% of quasars (QSOs); this indicates fast outflows (up to 0.2c) that intercept the observer's line of sight. These QSOs can be distinguished again into radio-loud (RL) BAL QSOs…
A new generation of sensitive X-ray measurements are indicating that the existence of X-ray attenuation column densities, $N_{H}>10^{24}\mathrm{cm}^{-2}$ is quite common amongst broad absorption line quasars (BALQSOs). This is significant…
Broad absorption lines (BALs) in quasar spectra identify high velocity outflows that likely exist in all quasars and could play a major role in feedback to galaxy evolution. The variability of BALs can help us understand the structure,…
We compile a large sample of broad absorption lines (BAL) quasars with X-ray observations from the \xmm archive data and Sloan Digital Sky Survey Data Release 5. The sample consists of 41 BAL QSOs. Among 26 BAL quasars detected in X-ray,…
Broad absorption line (BAL) quasars have been studied for over thirty years. Yet it is still unclear why and when we observe broad absorption lines in quasars. Is this phenomenon caused by geometry or is it connected with the evolution…
Broad absorption lines seen in some quasars prove the existence of ionized plasma outflows from the accretion disk. Outflows together with powerful jets are important feedback processes. Understanding physics behind BAL outflows might be a…
We isolate a set of quasars that exhibit emergent C iv broad absorption lines (BALs) in their spectra by comparing spectra in the SDSS Data Release 7 and the SDSS/BOSS Data Releases 9 and 10. After visually defining a set of emergent BALs,…
Using the radio observations by FIRST and NVSS, we build a sample of 151 radio variable quasars selected from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Data Release 3 (SDSS DR3). Six (probably another two) among them are classified as broad absorption…
It is widely accepted that the broad absorption line region (BALR) exists in most (if not all) quasars with a small covering factor. Recent works showed that the BALR is optically thick to soft and even medium energy X-rays, with a typical…
It was recently shown that there is a significant difference in the radio spectral index distributions of broad absorption line (BAL) quasars and unabsorbed quasars, with an overabundance of BAL quasars with steeper radio spectra. This…
We report the discovery of unusual broad absorption lines (BALs) in the bright quasar SDSS J075133.35+134548.3 at z~1, and present a detailed study of BAL and emission lines using the archived and newly obtained optical and NIR…
We present results from the largest systematic investigation of broad absorption line (BAL) acceleration to date. We use spectra of 140 quasars from three Sloan Digital Sky Survey programs to search for global velocity offsets in BALs over…