Active Galaxies

UNIT 14 ACTIVE GALAXIES

Structure
14.1 Introduction
Objectives
14.2 ‘Activities’ of Active Galaxies
How ‘Active’ are the Active Galaxies?
Classification of the Active Galaxies
Some Emission Mechanisms Related to the Study of Active Galaxies
14.3 Behaviour of Active Galaxies
Quasars and Radio Galaxies
Seyferts
BL Lac Objects and Optically Violent Variables
14.4 The Nature of the Central Engine
Unified Model of the Various Active Galaxies
14.5 Summary
14.6 Terminal Questions
14.7 Solutions and Answers

14.1 INTRODUCTION
In Unit 13, you have become familiar with various types of galaxies. However, there
are galaxies which do not fit into the scheme we described in the last unit. They
require more detailed understanding. In this Unit, we shall study the nature of these
galaxies. These galaxies are ‘active’, namely, there are signs of activity in them. For
instance, their intensities may change significantly in a matter of hours to days. The
activities may be manifested in the entire bandwidth of the electromagnetic waves,
ranging from radio waves to γ-rays.

One important point should be clear to you by now and that is: nothing in this
Universe is truly inactive. So why should we learn about ‘active’ galaxies in a
separate Unit, when all the galaxies are ‘active’? Truly, every galaxy is evolving and
therefore changing with time. Only the degree of activity varies. Roughly speaking,
we call those galaxies to be active which show properties such as very strong intensity
variation in a relatively short period, and show ejection of matter at very high speeds,
etc. Since they are compact, the nuclei of these galaxies show more ‘activity’. So,
naturally, we are interested in studying these compact regions, which are known as
Active Galactic Nuclei or simply AGNs. Several classes of objects may be called
‘AGNs’: These are: Radio Galaxies, Quasars, BL Lac Objects, Optically Violent
Variables, Seyfert Galaxies, Star-Burst Galaxies, etc. In this unit, we will try to
understand how some of these objects behave and why they behave that way.

Objectives
After studying this unit, you should be able to:

• describe the nature of activities near the active galactic nuclei;

• explain how these objects are classified;
• explain the importance of synchrotron radiation for the study of AGN; and
• describe the structure of matter very close to the active galactic nuclei.

21
Galaxies and the
Universe 14.2 ‘ACTIVITIES’ OF ACTIVE GALAXIES
You have learnt in the last Unit that there is something unusual going on in the nuclei
of many galaxies. The ‘unusual’ may be the tremendous amount of energy released, or
may be the emission of extremely high energy particles in the form of narrow jets. It is
obvious that all galaxies are not equally active. Therefore, there is a need to discuss
further how active an active galaxy really is.

14.2.1 How ‘Active’ are the Active Galaxies?

Active galaxies exhibit evidences of activity in a variety of ways. Their luminosities
may be around 1044 erg s−1 (compare this with the luminosity of the Sun, which is
33 −1 48−49 −1
4 × 10 erg s ) and can go up to 10 erg s . This tremendous energy release is
possible only if these objects swallow a few stars per year and convert them into
energy. Sometimes the luminosity may vary by tens of percents in a matter of hours!
This gives you an idea of the compactness of the size of the nuclei of these galaxies.
Recall that light travels at a speed of 3 × 1010cm/s and at this rate in, say, three hours
4 14
time (~ 10 s), it will travel 3 × 10 cm. This is roughly the size of the region from
where most of the energy is released. You already know from Unit 11 that a black
hole of mass M has a size of 3 × 105 (M/MΘ) cm. Thus, if the activity of the Active
Galaxies is governed by a black hole at the centre, it must harbour a black hole of
mass of around 109 MΘ or so.

Another signature of the activity is that these galaxies emit non-thermal emissions in
all the wavelengths, i.e., radio to γ-rays. Compared to a normal galaxy, where the
nuclear brightness never masks the spiral arms or the rest of the galaxy, in active
galaxies, the nucleus is so bright that the rest of the galactic structure is not seen in
most cases. Active galaxies also produce (generally) jet-like outflows of very high
energy particles on both sides, normal to the galactic plane. These jets are highly
collimated and are continuously ejected. Normal galaxies do not produce these jets.
Apart from these, sometimes the emission lines are broad and the state of polarization
of the emitted light changes with time in a matter of minutes!

Since a tremendous amount of energy is released continuously (rather than a one-time

event as in a super-novae), it is natural to assume that the main reason of this is the
gravitational energy released by the accretion of matter. What is the source of this
matter? What is the nature of the accretion disks? How would the radiation be emitted
and at what frequency? Why do the jets form? How are the jets collimated? All these
important questions still puzzle astrophysicists today and only some of these questions
have been answered satisfactorily.

14.2.2 Classification of the Active Galaxies

Active galaxies are classified according to some, often very vague, criteria. Broadly
speaking they may be classified in the following way:

a) Radio Galaxies: In these galaxies, the emission in radio waves is very strong,
larger than 1040 ergs/s. They could be further classified into extended radio
galaxies and compact radio galaxies, depending on the size of the emission region.

b) Quasars: These objects were called Quasi-Stellar-Objects or Quasars because

they ‘looked’ like stars. Basically, in these objects, the nucleus emits most of the
radiation. The behaviour in radio is often similar to that of the radio galaxies. In
some, radio emission is not prominent and the quasars are called radio quiet
quasars.

22
c) Seyfert Galaxies: These are usually spiral galaxies with unusual nuclear Active Galaxies
brightness. Some, say, 5 to 10% of the Seyfert galaxies may be ellipticals as well.
They have very broad emission lines in their spectra which distinguish them from
other classes.

d) BL Lacertae Objects: These are commonly known as BL Lac objects. They are
identified by very rapid variability in radio, infrared and optical emissions. The
light is strongly polarized and the polarization varies rapidly. They have no
prominent emission lines and the spectrum is dominated by a continuum.

e) Optically Violent Variables: These are similar to the BL Lac Objects, but they
have weak, broad emission lines.

f) Star-Burst Galaxies: In these galaxies the star formation rate is much higher
compared to the rates in normal galaxies. The radiation is emitted in the infra-red
region. Star formation may be triggered by merger or collision of galaxies.

(a) (b)

(c) (d)

Fig.14.1: a) Radio galaxy 3C433 (image courtesy of NRAO/AUI sourced from www.nrao.edu/.../3c433_
3.5cm_opt_6in_med.jpg; b) Quasar 3C273; c) central region of the Seyfert galaxy NGC 1068; d) Starburst galaxy
M82 23
Galaxies and the Let us now learn about some of these objects which show major activities.
Universe

14.2.3 Some Emission Mechanisms Related to the Study of Active

Galaxies

One of the most important processes that you need to know while studying active
Galaxies is the synchrotron radiation. You may also know this radiation as cyclotron
radiation, a terminology used for radiation emitted by low energy electrons in the
presence of a magnetic field. To emit this radiation two ingredients are required,
namely, large number of high energy electrons and a strong magnetic field. Since the
magnetic field is present everywhere in AGN, synchrotron radiation is a very common
phenomenon.

A relativistic electron of rest mass m0, charge e, velocity v (and Lorentz factor
2 2 −1/2
γ = (1 − v /c ) ) in a magnetic field B feels the force,

d e
( γm0 v ) = ( v × B) (14.1)
dt c

The electron moves in a helical path in the magnetic field (Fig. 14.2) with an angular
frequency

eB  B   10 
ωg = = 1.8 × 1011     rad s −1 (14.2)
γm0 c  10 5 G   γ 

Magnetic field

Electrons in a
helical path

Fig.14.2: Motion of an electron in a magnetic field and the emission of synchrotron radiation
(image credit Gemini Observatory)

The emission is in the shape of a broad spectrum with a peak at critical frequency
ωc ~ γ2 ωg.

Because of this continuous radiation, the electron loses energy and starts cooling with
time. The cooling time scale is clearly the time in which the whole energy is radiated
away:
2
Tcool ~ γm0c /P s. (14.3)

where P is the energy emitted by an electron in one second.

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To obtain the net emission from the entire gas you need to consider the velocity Active Galaxies
distribution of the electrons, which may or may not be thermal. In AGN the
distribution is non-thermal. For the non-thermal electrons, the emission spectrum
looks like a power-law, i.e., the intensity of radiation is expressed as:

F(ν) = F0 ν−α (14.4)

Flat
where α is a constant known as the spectral index. When α ≤ 0.4, we call the
spectrum a flat spectrum, and when α is larger, we call the spectrum a steep
spectrum (Fig. 14.3).
Steep

F (ν)
Synchrotron radiation is largely linearly polarized. Crudely speaking, an observer
viewing the gyrating electron sideways will see an oscillating electron which emits a
linearly polarized radiation. From above and below, oppositely directed circular
polarization will be seen. These circular polarizations will cancel each other when
overall integration is made but the linear polarization will survive and it can be
detected easily. Another form of radiation which is very important is the emission line
component. Emission lines come from atomic transitions from one bound state to ν
another (Fig. 14.4). Fig.14.3: Schematic diagram
of flat and steep
etc… spectra

Level 4

Level 3

Level 2
Energy

Level 1

Fig.14.4: Schematic diagram of an atomic transition from an excited state to a lower state and
photon emission

Similarly, when a photon of the ‘right’ frequency ν = (Ef − Ei)/h is incident on an

atom, the photon may be absorbed. This absorption line will be very thin if the
emitting atom is at rest, but if the atoms are moving around, the line may become
broad due to Doppler effect: The line width dν will then correspond to the velocity v
of the emitting matter: dν/ν ~ v/c, where ν is the frequency of the radiation emitted in
the rest frame and c is the velocity of light. From the broadening of the lines from
Seyfert galaxies, sometimes the velocity inferred is anywhere close to
7 × 106 − 2 × 107 m/s.

In the next few sections, we shall discuss some of the important classes of the Active
Galaxies in more detail. After that, you will learn about the detailed nature of the
activities close to the centre, i.e., the nature of the ‘central engines’ which drive these
powerful sources in space. But before that, you may like to try an SAQ!

SAQ 1 Spend
5 min.
Explain why synchrotron radiation is largely linearly polarized.
25
Galaxies and the
Universe 14.3 BEHAVIOUR OF ACTIVE GALAXIES
In this section, you will learn about the properties and behaviour of quasars, radio
galaxies, Seyferts, BL Lac objects and optically violent variables.

14.3.1 Quasars and Radio Galaxies

A quasar (contraction of QUASi-stellAR radio sources) is an astronomical source of

electromagnetic energy, including light that dwarfs the energy output of the brightest
stars. A quasar may readily release energy in levels equal to the output of dozens of
average galaxies combined. The best explanation for quasars is that they are powered
by supermassive black holes.Quasars can be observed in many parts of the
electromagnetic spectrum including radio, infrared, optical, ultraviolet, X-ray and
even gamma rays while most quasars are found to emit in the infrared.

The spectra of quasars exhibit characteristic strong emission lines rising above a broad
continuum, which are red-shifted due to the high recession velocity of the quasar
relative to us. For example, the Lyman α line formed by transitions between the n = 1
and n = 2 energy levels in neutral hydrogen normally produces spectral lines with a
wavelength of 121.6 nm or 1216 Å which is in the ultraviolet part of the spectrum. In
quasar spectra, these are seen at wavelengths in the visible part of the spectrum (see
Fig. 14.5).

Fig.14.5: Spectrum of a quasar showing relative intensity on the y axis as a function of wavelength
(from www.eso.org)

The nuclei of quasars emit UV radiation so strongly that the rest of the galaxy is
masked. The radiation that is observed from radio wave to X-ray is totally non-
thermal. Synchrotron radiation is the most likely source of this emission. Some
26 quasars could be intense in radio emission while other quasars may have no
significant radio emission. The power emitted in radio waves is usually smaller than Active Galaxies
that emitted in other wavelengths. In the infra-red region the emitted power is
significant.

Fig. 14.6: Spectrum of a quasar in the X-ray region showing relative intensity on the y axis
(Source: www.estec.esa.nl)

Quasars are found to vary rapidly in a matter of few minutes to weeks, months and
even years especially in the optical and radio regions. Since nothing can travel faster
than light, the shortest time-scale of appreciable variation gives an idea of the upper
limit of the size of the object as well. For instance, if a quasar intensity doubles in a
day (tvar ~ 105s), the size of the region emitting most of the radiation must be smaller
than the light-crossing time, i.e., Lsize ~ ctvar ≈ 3 × 1015cm. So the central region must
be even smaller. This indirectly gives an estimate of the mass of the black hole:

Lsize
M= 1010 M Θ ,
3 × 1015

where Lsize is in units of cm.

Emission lines from the quasars are very broad and show characteristic red shifts
because these objects are located at very large distances. The red shift indirectly tells
you how far the object is situated.

The width of the emission lines are determined by large scale motions of the emitting
matter. The emitted frequency ν0 is related to the observed frequency ν by,

ν = ν0 (1 + v/c).

If the emitting atoms follow the Maxwell’s velocity distribution at temperature T, then
we can obtain a simple expression for the intensity distribution I(ν) dν.

27
Galaxies and the We can write
Universe

 M c 2 (ν − ν )2 
p 0 
I d (ν) = I 0 exp − (14.5)
 2 k BT 2 
 ν0 

Here I0 is the maximum intensity which occurs at ν = ν0, and Mp is the mass of the
atom of the gas. As mentioned earlier, the width directly gives the information about
the velocity, and therefore the temperature of the emitter. If we define half-width of
the line as the width at half of maximum intensity, then we can show that

2k B T
half width = 2(ν − ν 0 ) = 2ν 0 ln 2 (14.6)
M pc2

Spend SAQ 2
10 min. o
What is the half width dν of a line of wavelength λ = 6300 A when the temperature of
the gas is 105K? Assume O atoms to be the emitters.

The quasars which are located far away, i.e., quasars with large red shifts also exhibit
a strong degree of absorption features. The red shifts of the absorption lines are almost
always found to be less than or equal to the red shift of the emission line itself. This
indicates that the absorbing gas is located in between the quasar, or is a part of the
quasar itself.

Radio Galaxies

Those Active Galaxies which emit very large amount of energy in radio waves, in
excess of, say, 1040 erg/s, are known as radio galaxies. Some of these could be
compact radio galaxies, i.e., the emission is concentrated near the nuclear region. The
others could be extended radio galaxies, i.e., the emission is seen in the form of two
very large blobs which are well separated and usually co-aligned with the central,
optically bright nucleus. Fig. 14.7 shows the nature of the radio emitting regions in a
radio galaxy.

Fig.14.7: Radio emitting regions in a radio galaxy: jets from the radio galaxy 3C296. The infrared
28 regions are shown in red
 43 44
A typical radio lobe in a bright radio galaxy has a luminosity of about 10 or 10 Active Galaxies
ergs/s. But as we discussed in the last section, this is due to synchrotron radiation and
it cools rapidly. In order that the blobs are produced and propagated for millions of
years, they must be supplied with energy constantly. Indeed, higher resolution radio
images point to an important finding: These radio emitting blobs are supplied with
energy by very narrow jets of rapidly moving matter.

If one observes these jets at higher and higher resolution, the matter will be found to
propagate in the same direction even close to the centre. This indicates that the prime
cause of the jet production lies in the activity at the centre. We shall discuss this in
Section 14.5.

14.3.2 Seyferts
Seyfert galaxies are named after Carl K. Seyfert who, in 1943, described their central
regions as having peculiar spectra with notable emission lines. Seyfert galaxies
appear to be normal spiral galaxies, but their cores fluctuate in brightness. It is
believed that these fluctuations are caused by powerful eruptions in the core of the
galaxy. In some Seyferts the nucleus outshines all the stars in the host galaxy.

These active galaxies are distinguished from the others because of the presence of
very ‘broad’ and ‘narrow’ (but broader compared to those from the normal galaxies)
emission lines. These are known as the Type-I and Type-II Seyferts, respectively.
Often in a given galaxy, features of both the types are seen. Fig. 14.8 shows the
emission sectrum of a Type-I Seyfert galaxy.
Relative flux

Wavelength

Fig.14.8: Emission spectrum of the Type I Seyfert NGC 5548

In the presence of rapidly moving emitters, a line emitted at a fixed frequency ν in the
rest frame of the atom, will be observed at a different frequency ν′ and as we have
discussed before, the shift in frequency is related to the velocity of the atom by

dν ν′ − ν
= ~ v / c. (14.7)
ν ν

Since the sign of v could be both negative and positive, the shift occurs on both the
sides of the emitted frequency.

Close to the centre of the Seyferts, there are emitting clouds randomly rotating around
the nucleus and are responsible for the broad emission lines. These lines show 29
Galaxies and the variability in a matter of weeks to months. From this, one can estimate the distance
Universe
from the centre where the emitting clouds must be located. It turns out that they could
be as close as 1016cm. The corresponding velocities could be as high as
6 7 −1
7×10 − 2×10 m s .

Spend SAQ 3
5 min.
Estimate the distance that an emission cloud must have from the centre of a Seyfert
galaxy (having a central compact object of mass 107MΘ) in order to produce a velocity
of 106 m s−1. Use Kepler’s law.

Lines emitted from the clouds which are located very far away are narrow and they
correspond to velocities of the order of only 200 − 500 km/s. Assuming that the
rotation velocities of these clouds are Keplerian, a factor of twenty lower in velocity
corresponds to a factor of four hundred larger in distance (for a given central object).
Thus, narrow line regions (NLRs) are located very far away.

14.3.3 BL Lac Objects and Optically Violent Variables

These types of active galaxies are characterized by a high degree of variability in

radio, infra-red and optical wavelengths. For instance there are cases in which the
intensity varies by a factor of 10 or more in a matter of weeks. From one night to
another, variation up to 10-20% is very common. These objects have no emission
lines and the polarization is large and rapidly varying. The emitted radiation is most
concentrated at the centre and there is a weak sign, if any, of jets or radio lobes. In
optically violent variables, there is a weak broad emission line component. Together
these are known as Blazars. Fig. 14.9 shows a typical spectrum from a BL Lac object.

Fig.14.9: Spectrum of the BL Lac object Markarian 421 (Source: www.astr.ua.edu/ keel/agn)

30
 Active Galaxies
14.4 THE NATURE OF THE CENTRAL ENGINE
So far you have learnt about various classes of active galaxies. But what is really
happening close to the centres of these galaxies? We have already mentioned that
from the nature of rapid variability, one can infer that the masses of the central objects
must be very high and must be concentrated in a compact region. Also, you have
47 −1
learnt that energy is released at a tremendous rate. For instance, a rate of 10 erg s
26 −1
corresponds to a destruction of matter of about 10 g s (using the famous formula
2 7
of Einstein E = mc ). So in one year, i.e., in 3.15 × 10 s, these galactic centres
33
completely destroy about 3 × 10 g of matter per year (which is equivalent to 1.5
times the mass of the Sun!).

One of the simplest solutions to this energy budget is that the matter can be accreted
on to the central compact object and the gravitational energy could be released. This
energy is eventually converted into kinetic energy and then to thermal energy and
radiation:

GMm p 1
~ m p v 2 ~ k B T ~ hν (14.8)
r 2

where, M is the mass of the central compact object, mp is the mass of the particle, T is
the temperature of the gas, kB and h are the Boltzmann constant and Planck’s constant,
respectively, v is the velocity of matter and ν is the emission frequency. As matter
falls closer and closer to the centre, the velocity is increased. The gas becomes hotter
and radiation is emitted at a much higher frequency.

Now, what could the nature of the compact object be? In Unit 11, you have seen that
only stable compact objects which are also massive are necessarily black holes. So,
for the sake of argument, assume that the main cause of the activity is due to matter
falling on to a super massive black hole. Does this picture explain everything?
Roughly speaking, the answer is ‘yes’!

14.4.1 Unified Model of the Various Active Galaxies

So far, you have learnt how matter is accreted on to a black hole and how the radiation
is emitted. What we have described so far is what goes on, say, within the inner 1000
rg where rg = 2GMBH /c2 is the Schwarzschild radius of a black hole. When the black
hole is super-massive, as in the case of our present discussion, the region farther out
emits optical and infra-red radiation since there is supposed to be a large dusty torus.
There are smaller clouds of gas, some of which are closer than this torus and move
very rapidly. They are responsible for broad line emissions (BLR) since high
velocity causes larger broadening of lines.

Similarly some of the clouds move around very farther away and move slower. These
clouds produce narrower emission lines. Thus, depending on the angle at which the
observation is made, the dusty torus may block the BLR only selectively. The
possibility that different classes of active galaxies may be actually due to such
observational effects has been proved in the past most conclusively. This is because
after prolonged observation, objects of a given class have been found to change their
class altogether.

In Fig. 14.10 we draw the unified model of AGN that is widely adopted in the
literature, i.e., all AGN are the same. The differences in lines, jets and spectra may be
due to different viewing angles. As the plane of accretion can be randomly oriented in
the sky, different lines of sight will result in different kinds of observations. So, the
same object may be seen differently and classified differently. It all depends on our
line of sight! 31
Galaxies and the
Universe
HBLR
Seyfert 2

Narrow line clouds

Jet
Dusty
torus Accretion
Broad line disk
clouds
Cool Warm Hot Hot Warm Cool
dust dust dust dust dust dust

non-HBLR
Seyfert 2
Black hole

Seyfert 1
Fig.14.10: The unified scheme for understanding AGN

In this unit you have learnt about the active galactic nuclei. Let us now summarise the
contents of this unit.

14.5 SUMMARY

• Active galactic nuclei (AGN) are broadly classified as Radio Galaxies, Quasars,
BL Lac Objects, Optically Violent Variables, Seyfert Galaxies, Star-Burst
Galaxies, etc.
• The spectra of AGN reveal the nature and extent of activities in them, which
serves as the basis of their classification.
• The emission spectrum of AGN obeys the power law in the radio region:
F(ν) = F0 v−α
where α is a constant known as the spectral index. When α ≤ 0.4, the spectrum is
called a flat spectrum, and when α is larger, it is called a steep spectrum.
• One of the most important processes occurring in AGN is the synchrotron
radiation.
• According to the current understanding, all the AGN may actually be the same
object seen at different angles.
32
 Active Galaxies

14.6 TERMINAL QUESTIONS Spend 30 min.

1. Electrons having Lorentz factor γ = 100 are gyrating in a magnetic field of 1010G.
At what frequency would its synchrotron emission peak?

2. Derive the expression for the half width (Eq. 14.6) caused by Doppler effect.

3. Explain the origin of broad-line and narrow-line regions in a Seyfert galaxy.

4. Describe briefly the nature of the central engine in an AGN.

14.7 SOLUTIONS AND ANSWERS

Self Assessment Questions (SAQs)

1. See text.

2k B T
2. Half width = 2ν 0 ln 2
M pc2

2 2 × 1.38 × 10 −16 × 10 5
= ln 2 (in cgs units)
6300 × 10 −8 16 × 1.6 × 10 − 24

2 × 10 6 × 10 6 2 × 1.38
= × 0.693 × 10
63 16 × 1.6

200 2 × 1.38
= 1010 × 0.693 × 10
63 16 × 1.6

= 2.7 × 1010 Hz.

mv 2 GMm GM GM
3. = ⇒ v2 = ⇒R=
R R2 R v2

6.7 × 10 −8 × 10 7 × 2 × 10 33
= (in cgs units)
1016

= 1.34 × 1017 cm = 0.043 pc

Terminal Questions

B 10
1. ω g = 1.8 × 1011 rad s −1
5 γ
10

1010 10
ω c = γ 2 ω g = 10 4 ω g = 10 4 × 1.8 × 1011
10 5 100

= 1.8 × 1019 rad s - 1

33
Galaxies and the
Universe
 M c 2 (ν − ν )2 
p 0 
2. I d (ν) = I 0 exp −
 2 k BT 2 
 ν0 

I max = I 0 at ν = ν0

At half the maximum intensity

I
I= 0,
2

Therefore,

 M c 2 (ν − ν )2  1
p 0 
exp  − =
 2 k BT 2  2
 ν 0 

 M c 2 (ν − ν )2 
p 0 
⇒ exp  =2
 2 k BT 2 
 ν 0 

M p c 2 (ν − ν 0 ) 2
⇒ = ln 2
2k B T ν 02

2k B T
Thus, Half width = 2(ν − ν 0 ) = 2ν 0 ln 2
M pc2

3. See Text.

4. See Text.

34