Related papers: The Blazar Main Sequence
We discuss the features that mark the Flat Spectrum Radio Quasars from the BL Lacertae objects. We propose that FSRQs exceeding L = 10^{46} erg/s are powered by black hole accreting at rates dm/dt = 1 - 10; their power is dominated by the…
The characteristic properties of blazars (rapid variability, strong polarization, high brightness) are widely attributed to a powerful relativistic jet oriented close to our line of sight. Despite the spectral energy distributions (SEDs)…
We discuss the relation between the power carried by relativistic jets and the nuclear power provided by accretion, for a group of blazars including FSRQs and BL Lac objects. They are characterized by good quality broad band X-ray data…
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…
Blazar subclasses ranging from flat-spectrum radio quasars (FSRQs) through low-frequency-peaked BL Lac objects (LBLs) to high-frequency-peaked BL Lac objects (HBLs) exhibit a sequence of increasing spectral hardness with decreasing…
The $Fermi$ blazar observations show a strong correlation between $\gamma$-ray luminosities and spectral indices. BL Lac objects are less luminous with harder spectra than flat-spectrum radio quasars (FSRQs). Interestingly FSRQs are evident…
We have assembled a sample of 37 RLQs that have been imaged with the HST in order to investigate their black hole masses, accretion rates, and the structure of their accretion disks. The black hole masses were estimated from the…
We propose and test a fairly simple idea that could account for the blazar sequence: all jets are launched with similar energy per baryon, independently of their power. For instance, flat-spectrum radio quasars (FSRQs), the most powerful…
A discussion of the FSRQ -- BL Lac unification. All distinctive features marking these two Blazar subclasses find an unifying explanation if the sources are powered by central engines constituted by similar Kerr holes, but fueled at high…
We study the correlations of the flux of the broad-line emission ($F_{BLR}$) with the X-ray emission flux, optical emission flux at 5500 \AA and radio emission flux at 5 GHz, respectively, for a large sample of 50 Blazars (39 flat-spectrum…
We revisit the so called "blazar sequence", which connects the observed bolometric luminosity to the shape of the spectral energy distribution (SED) of blazars. We propose that the power of the jet and the SED of its emission are linked to…
We constructed a sample of 185 Flat Spectrum Radio Quasars (FSRQs) by cross-correlating the Shen et al.'s SDSS DR3 X-ray quasar sample with FIRST and GB6 radio catalogues. From the spectrum energy distribution (SED) constructed using…
Blazars, a subclass of radio-loud active galactic nuclei with relativistic jets aligned close to our line of sight, emit highly variable non-thermal radiation across the electromagnetic spectrum. The physical origin of their emission and…
The most extreme active galactic nuclei (AGN) are the radio active ones whose relativistic jet propagates close to our line of sight. These objects were first classified according to their emission line features into flat-spectrum radio…
We propose a scenario where blazars are classified as flat-spectrum radio quasars (FSRQs), BL Lacs, low synchrotron, or high synchrotron peaked objects according to a varying mix of the Doppler boosted radiation from the jet, the emission…
We have not identified for sure what is the mechanism launching, accelerating and collimating relativistic jets. The two most likely possibilities are the gravitational energy of the accreting matter or the rotational energy of a spinning…
Blazars optical emission is generally dominated by relativistic jets, although the host galaxy, accretion disk and broad line region (BLR) may also contribute significantly. Disentangling their contributions has been challenging for years…
The empirical relations in the black hole-accretion disk-relativistic jet system and physical processes behind these relations are still poorly understood, partly because they operate close to the black hole within the central light year.…
The BL Lac population is set apart from the rest of the active galactic nuclei by a number of peculiar features, including remarkably little signs of cosmological evolution. We focus on this feature, and take hint from the observations to…
Flat Spectrum Radio Quasars (FSRQs) are the most powerful relativistic jets seen from supermassive black holes (BHs) accreting via a radiatively efficient thin disc. Their high energy emission is well modelled by highly relativistic…