Related papers: Physics Input from Multiwavelength Observations of…
Observations of blazar jets are shrouded in relativistic effects, thus hindering our understanding of their intrinsic properties and dominant physical processes responsible for their generation, evolution,radiation and particle emission. In…
X-ray observations are essential for understanding the multimessenger emission mechanisms of active galactic nuclei (AGN). Blazars, a subset of AGN whose X-ray emission predominantly originates from relativistic jets, have been proposed as…
Optical spectral variability of quasars and BL Lac Objects is compared by means of the spectral variability parameter beta (Trevese & Vagnetti 2002). Both kinds of objects change their spectral slopes alpha, becoming bluer when brighter,…
Multi-wavelength light curves of bright gamma-ray blazars (e.g., 3C 454.3) reveal strong correlations across wavebands, yet striking dissimilarities in the details. This conundrum can be explained if the variable flux and polarization…
In our review of the blazar phenomenon, we discuss blazar models, with a focus on the following issues: sub-parsec jets and their environment; energy dissipation and particle acceleration; and radiative processes.
We compare the rise and decay timescales of $\sim$200 long-term ($\sim$weeks-months) GeV and R-band outbursts and $\sim$25 short-term ($\sim$hr-day) GeV flares in a sample of 10 blazars using light curves from the Fermi-LAT and the…
The parsec-scale radio properties of blazars detected by the Large Area Telescope (LAT) on board the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope have been investigated using observations with the Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA). Comparisons between LAT…
Multiwavelength variability of blazars offers indirect insight into their powerful engines and on the mechanisms through which energy is propagated from the centre down the jet. The BL Lac object Mkn 421 is a TeV emitter, a bright blazar at…
We present a polarization variability analysis of a sample of 26 $\gamma$-ray blazars monitored by the Steward Observatory between 2008 and 2018 in the optical band. We investigate the properties and long-term variability of their optical…
Blazars are a subclass of active galactic nuclei with relativistic jets pointing toward the observer. They are notable for their flux variability at all observed wavelengths and timescales. Together with simultaneous measurements at lower…
Active galactic nuclei come in many varieties. A minority of them are radio-loud, and exhibit two opposite prominent plasma jets extending from the proximity of the supermassive black hole up to megaparsec distances. When one of the…
Blazar emission models are usually divided into two big families, leptonic and hadronic, according to the particles which are responsible for the gamma-ray component of their spectral energy distributions. Even though leptonic models have…
Blazars are highly variable and display complex characteristics. A key characteristic is the flux probability distribution function or flux PDF whose shape depends upon the form of the underlying physical process driving variability. The BL…
The present status and understanding of the "spectral sequence" of blazars is discussed in the perspective of the upcoming GLAST launch. The vast improvement in sensitivity will allow to i) determine more objectively the "average" gamma-ray…
The radio properties of blazars detected by the Large Area Telescope (LAT) on board the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope have been observed as part of the VLBA Imaging and Polarimetry Survey (VIPS). This large, flux-limited sample of active…
This article focuses on certain variability and emission characteristics of Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN), especially their radio-loud subset consisting of quasars, BL Lacs and $\gamma$-ray detected narrow-line Seyfert 1 galaxies, all of…
We have recently proposed a simplified scenario for blazars in which these sources are classified as flat-spectrum radio quasars or BL Lacs according to the prescriptions of unified schemes, and to a varying combination of Doppler boosted…
After the discovery of powerful relativistic jets from Narrow-Line Seyfert 1 Galaxies, and the understanding of their similarity with those of blazars, a problem of terminology was born. The word blazar is today associated to BL Lac Objects…
We perform monthly total and polarized intensity imaging of a sample of $\gamma$-ray blazars (33 sources) with the Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA) at 43 GHz with the high resolution of 0.1 milliarcseconds. From Summer 2008 to October 2009…
Blazars are a sub-category of radio-loud active galactic nuclei with relativistic jets pointing towards the observer. They exhibit non-thermal variable emission, which practically extends over the whole electromagnetic spectrum. Despite the…