A Peculiar Broad Line Radio Galaxy 1938-155:VLA Observation at 90 cm

We observed 1938-155, a broad line radio galaxy (BLRG), with the Very Large Array (VLA) at 90cm with an angular resolution of 6.8' × 4.0'. The source consists of two components separated by 4 arcsec (- 20kpc, for H0 = 65km s-1 Mpc-1, q0 = 0.5) along the SE-NW direction. Both components show steep-spectra with a similar spectral index α - 0.83 ± 0.07 (Sv ∝ v-α). The bright double components are surrounded by a low-brightness cocoon. The radio properties of the two bright components are consistent with the hot spots produced by twin jets. An upper limit of - 0.0008 for the core dominance parameter (R) is inferred, suggesting there is no prominent radio core in the source. Assuming a modest viewing angle 30f77, a jet velocity is estimated - 0.07 c, based on the jet to counter-jet brightness ratio (J). The lower limit in jet speed inferred is consistent with no Doppler beaming effect on the jet. The radio galaxy 1938-155 could be an exceptional BLRG with no prominent radio core or jet.

Non-ballistic motion and precessing helical trajectory in quasar NRAO 150

NRAO 150 is a very special radio quasar in which prominent non-ballistic superluminal motion has been observed in its inner-jet region. We apply model-fittings to the kinematics of the superluminal knots（trajectory, distance from the core and apparent velocity） in terms of a helical precessing jet-nozzle model.Five cases are considered in which the angle between the jet axis and the line of sight is assumed to be 6？,3？, 1？, 0.6？ and 0.12？, respectively. It is shown that the superluminal components have intrinsic acceleration in the innermost regions（≤0.2 mas from the core）. The phenomenon of precessing nozzle/trajectory can be understood on the basis of relativistic magnetohydrodynamic theories for relativistic jets.

Correlated Radio-Optical Variations on Intraday Timescales

Correlated radio-optical variations on intraday timescales have been observed （e.g. in BLO 0716＋714） and such radio intraday variability is suggested to have an intrinsic origin. Recently, multi-wavelength observations, simultaneous at radio, mm-submm, optical and hard X-rays, of 0716＋714, show that during a period of intraday/interday variations at radio and mm wavelengths, the apparent brightness temperature of the source exceeded the Compton-limit （-10^12 K） by 2-4 orders of magnitude, but no Compton catastrophe （or no high luminosity of inverse-Compton radiation） was detected. It is also found that the intraday/interday variations at mm-submm wavelengths are consistent with the evolutionary behavior of a standard synchrotron source and for the intraday/interday variations at centimeter wavelengths opacity effects can play a significant role, which is consistent with the interpretation suggested previously by Qian et al. Thus the apparent high brightness temperatures may probably be explained in terms of Doppler boosting effects due to bulk relativistic motion of the source. We will argue a scenario to simulate the correlations between the radio and optical variations on intraday timescales observed in BLO 0716＋714 in terms of a relativistic shock propagating through a jet with a dual structure.

Radio observations of the first three-months of Fermi AGN at 4.8 GHz

Using the Urumqi 25 m radio telescope, sources from the first three months of the Fermi-large area telescope detected active galactic nuclei （AGN） catalog with a declination of 〉 0° were observed in 2009 at 4.8 GHz. The radio flux density ap- peared to correlate with the γ-ray intensity. Intra-day variability （IDV） observations were performed in March, April and May 2009 for 42 selected γ-ray bright blazars, and ~60% of them showed evidence of flux variability at 4.8 GHz during the IDV observations. The IDV detection rate was higher than that in previous flat-spectrum AGN samples. IDV appeared more often in the very long baseline interferometry-core dominant blazars, and the non-IDV blazars showed relatively ＂steeper＂ spectral in- dices than the IDV blazars. Pronounced inter-month variability was also found in two BL Lac objects： J0112＋2244 and J0238＋1636.

A Possible Periodicity in the Radio Light Curves of 3C 454.3

During the period 1966.5-2006.2 the 15 GHz and 8 GHz light curves of 3C 454.3 （z = 0.859） show a quasi-periodicity of ,-12.8 yr （-6.9 yr in the rest frame of the source） with a double-bump structure. This periodic behaviour is interpreted in terms of a rotating double-jet model in which the two jets are created from the black holes of a binary system and rotating with the period of the orbital motion. The periodic variations in the radio fluxes of 3C 454.3 are suggested to be mainly due to the lighthouse effects （or the variation in Doppler boosting） of the precessing jets caused by the orbital motion. In addition, variations in the rate of mass accreting onto the black holes may be also involved.

A new three-stage evolution model for millimeter to centimeter wavelength outbursts in BL Lacertae

The multi-frequency light curves of BL Lacertae during 1997.5 - 1999.5 have been modeled by four outbursts, each having a 3-stage evolution in the （Sm, vm） plane with distinct rising-plateau-decaying phases. It is shown that the observed light curves can be well fitted for the eight frequencies from 350 GHz to 4.8 GHz. The main characteristics of the model-fitting are; （1） the outbursts are found to have very flat spectra with an optically thin spectral index α （defined as Sv α u^-α） of about 0.15. This is consistent with the results previously obtained by Valtaoja et al. （1992）; （2） it is found that there is no spectral flattening between the rising-plateau phase and the decay phase. In other words, the optically thin spectral index does not change from the rising-plateau phase to the decay phase. These features are in contrast to the 3-stage shocked-in-jet model proposed by Marscher ＆ Gear （1985） for submm- IR-optical flares, in which a spectral flattening of △α = 0.5 is predicted when a transition occurs from the Compton/synchrotron phase （or rising-plateau phase） to the adiabatic phase （or decay phase） with α≥ 0.5 for the shock being non-radiative. We propose a new model to interpret the fitting results, suggesting that the 3-stage evolution of the mm-cm outbursts in BL Lacertae may be related to the process of shock formation and propagation in a highly collimated jet （for example, a ＇parabolic＇ jet）. In particular, during the rising phase, the thickness of the synchrotron-radiating region created by the shock may rapidly increase with time （relative to the jet width） due to the rapid injection of relativistic electrons and a magnetic field, and this leads to the observed behavior that the turnover flux density Sm rapidly increases while the turnover frequency um decreases. In the decay phase, the emitting plasma enters into a free expansion regime without further injection of relativistic electrons and a magnetic field （for example, when a transition from a collimated regime into a conical regime occurs）. The plateau phase is a short period between the two regimes with no distinct features determined.

Resolving the inner jet of PKS 1749+096 with super-resolution VLBA images at 7 mm

High resolution imaging of inner jets in Active Galactic Nuclei(AGNs)with Very Long Baseline Interferometry(VLBI)at millimeter wavelengths provides deep insight into the launching and collimation mechanisms of relativistic jets.The BL Lac object,PKS 1749+096,shows a core-dominated jet pointing toward the northeast on parsec-scales revealed by various VLBI observations.In order to investigate the jet kinematics,in particular,the orientation of the inner jet on the smallest accessible scales and the basic physical conditions of the core,in this work we adopted a super-resolution technique,the Bi-Spectrum Maximum Entropy Method(BSMEM),to reanalyze VLBI images based on the Very Long Baseline Array(VLBA)observations of PKS 1749+096 within the VLBA-BU-BLAZAR 7 mm monitoring program.These observations include a total of 105 epochs covering the period from 2009 to 2019.We found that the stacked image of the inner jet is limb-brightened with an apparent opening angle of 50°.0±8°.0 and 42°.0±6°.0 at the distances of 0.2 and 0.3 mas(0.9 and 1.4 pc)from the core,corresponding to an intrinsic jet opening angle of 5°.2±1°.0 and 4°.3±0°.7,respectively.In addition,our images show a clear jet position angle swing in PKS 1749+096 within the last ten years.We discuss the possible implications of jet limb brightening and the connection of the position angle with jet peak flux density and gamma-ray brightness.

The jet of FSRQ PKS 1229-02 and its misidentification as a γ-ray AGN

Flat-spectrum radio quasar PKS 1229-02 with a knotty and asymmetric radio morphology was identified as the optical and radio counterpart of a γ-ray source. In this paper, we study the properties(e.g.morphology, opacity, polarization and kinematics) of the jet in PKS 1229-02 using radio interferometry.With our results, we find that the knotty and asymmetric morphology of this source may probably shaped by the interaction between its anterograde jet and the nonuniform dense ambient medium. By reproducing a Spectral Energy Distribution of PKS 1229-02 with the obtained kinematic parameters, we find that the relativistic beaming effect in PKS 1229-02 is not strong enough to produce the reported γ-ray emission,i.e. PKS 1229-02 may not be a γ-ray AGN. The misidentification may probably be due to the poor spatial resolution of the γ-ray detector of the previous generation.

Multifrequency Polarization Variations in the Quasar 0917+624

We present a detailed analysis of multi-frequency observations of linear polarization in the intraday variable quasar 0917+624 (z = 1.44). The observations were made in May 1989 at five frequencies (1.4, 2.7, 5.0, 8.3 and 15GHz) with the VLA and the Effelsberg 100 m-telescope and in December 1988 at two frequencies (2.7 and 5.0 GHz) with the latter. It is shown that the relationship between the variations of the polarized and total flux density is highly wavelength dependent, and the multi-frequency polarization behavior may be essential for investigating the mechanisms causing these variations. It is shown that the variations observed at 20 cm can be interpreted in terms of refractive interstellar scintillation. However, after subtracting the variation due to scintillation, three 'features' emerged in the light-curve of the polarized flux density, indicating an additional variable component. Interestingly, these features are shown to be correlated with the variations at 2-6 cm, thus indicating that these features and the associated variations are due to some intrinsic causes. Moreover, a very rapid polarization angle swing of - 180° observed in December 1988 which cannot be explained by refractive interstellar scintillation, may also be produced by an intrinsic mechanism. Accordingly, we use a shock model to explain the polarization variations observed at the higher frequencies, although scintillation could also exist. The shock model can explain not only the variation of intensity, but also the time variation of its degree and angle of polarization, including the rapid swing of the polarization angle. It is shown that the degree and angle of polarization of the shock need only vary slightly in order to account for the observed complicated behaviour of polarization.

The Kiloparsec-scale Structure of 3C 286

We present radio images of the compact steep spectrum (CSS) quasar 3C 286 acquired with the Very Large Array (VLA) at 8.4 and 22.5 GHz. The source exhibits a two-sided core-jet structure with a bright central component and two extended components one to the east (P.A. 100°) and another to the southwest (P.A. - 116°). From the compact core, an extension runs towards the southwest component up to - 0.7 arcsecond. The emission between the primary central component and the southwest component exhibits a knotty structure. A gradual change of the jet position angles from -135° to -120° in the inner southwest jet suggests a local bend. The position angle changes of the major eastern components E2 and El suggest that the eastern jet likely follows a curved trace. The bends in the jet trace may be associated with a relativistic precession or some interaction between the jet and the ambient matter. A mean spectral index of a22.58.4- 0.76 (Xv Va) is estimated for the core component. Steep spectra are also obtained for the extended southwest component (2.6', P.A. -116°) and eastern component (0.8', P.A. 100°), with a22.58.4-0.88 and a22.58.4-1.79, respectively. The radio morphologies and spectral index distributions suggest that the core seen in our images is likely to be the beamed inner jet while the real nucleus is dimmed by it beaming away from us.

Interstellar Refractive Scintillation and Intraday Polarization Angle Swings

Intraday polarization angle swings of ～180° observed in two sources (QSO0917+624 and QSO 1150+812) are discussed in the framework of refractive interstellar scintillationby a continuous interstellar medium. Model-fits to the I-, Q- and U- light curves were made for bothsources. It is shown that for the case of 0917+624 both the intraday intensity variations and thepolarization angle swing of ～180° could be explained consistently in terms of a four-componentmodel, which comprises one steady and two scintillating polarized components and one furthernon-polarized scintillating component. The polarization angle swing of ～180° observed in 1150+812,which occurred when the polarized flux density was almost constant, could not be explained in termsof refractive scintillation by a continuous medium and might be due to other mechanisms (e.g.,scintillation by interstellar clouds).

High Brightness Temperatures in IDV Sources

High brightness temperatures are a characteristic feature of IntraDay Variability （IDV） of extragalactic radio sources. Recent studies of the polarization properties of some IDV sources （e.g., 1150＋812, PKS 0405-385 and 0716＋714） have shown that these sources harbor several compact IDV components with angular sizes of -10-30μas and very high polarizations （of up to -50%-70%）. These results indicate the possibility of the existence of uniform magnetic fields in the IDV components. We investigate the incoherent synchrotron and self- Compton radiation of an anisotropic distribution of relativistic electrons which spin around the magnetic field lines at small pitch angles. The brightness temperature limit caused by second-order Compton losses is discussed and compared to the brightness temperatures derived from energy equipartition arguments. It is found that anisotropic distributions of electrons moving in ordered magnetic fields can raise the equipartition and Compton brightness temperatures by a factor of up to -3-5. This would remove some of the difficulties in the interpretation of extremely high intrinsic brightness temperatures of 〉 1012 K （or apparent brightness temperatures of - 10^14 K with a Doppler factor of -30）.

An Intrinsic Model for the Polarization Position Angle Swing Observed in QSO 1150+812

The rapid polarization position angle swing of ~ 180° observed in QSO 1150+812 at 2cm by Kochenov and Gabuzda is quite a regular event. One interesting property of the event is that, during the time of the swing the polarized flux density remained almost constant. We suggest that such an event can be explained in terms of a relativistic thin shock propagating through a uniform helical magnetic field, giving rise to relativistic aberration effects as the transverse field component rotates. The model may also be applicable to other similar events in which variations in polarization are not accompanied by variations in total flux density.

Periodicity of the ejection of superluminal components in 3C345

The search for periodic behavior in Blazars has been an important subject, which is helpful for providing significant clues to the structure and physical processes of their central energy engine. A binary black hole system has recently been suggested for causing precession of relativistic jets and rotation of the ejection position angle of VLBI knots in superluminal sources. It has been suggested that in QSO 3C345, the ejection direction of the superluminal knots rotates due to the precession of the central engine and thus the ejection position angle of the successive knots shows a periodic behavior. Some authors argue for a period of precession being ～5.6 yr （Abraham ＆ Caproni）, ～8-10 yr （Klare et al.） and ～9.5 yr （Lobanov ＆ Roland）. Applying the helical model proposed by Qian et al. and selecting appropriate parameters to fit the initial trajectories （within 0.3 mas） of all the components （C4 to C10）, we derive the relation between the ejection position angle of the components and their precession phase, and thus find a 6.9-year precession period （4.3 yr in the source frame）, which can fit the ejection position angle of all these superluminal knots well. Since the VLBI observations have covered more than two precession periods, confirmation in one or more future periods would be important. In addition, we emphasize that the initial parts of the trajectories of these knots can be fitted by a common helical pattern （channel） through a precessing of its initial phase. This scenario （or helical precessing model） is different from the usual ballistic precessing model in which the individual superluminal knots move along straight-lines after ejection （Tateyama ＆ Kingham）.

Model fitting of the kinematics of ten superluminal components in blazar 3C 279

The kinematics of ten superluminal components （C11-C16, C18, C20, C21 and C24） of blazar 3C 279 are studied from VLBI observations. It is shown that their initial trajectory, distance from the core and apparent speed can be well fitted by the precession model proposed by Qian. Combined with the results of the model fit for the six superluminal components （C3, C4, C7a, C8, C9 and C10） already pub-lished, the kinematics of sixteen superluminal components can now be consistently interpreted in the precession scenario with their ejectiontimes spanning more than 25 yr （or more than one precession period）. The results from model fitting show the possible existence of a common precessing trajectory for these knots within a pro- jected core distance of ～0.2-0.4 mas. In the framework of the jet-precession scenario, we can, for the first time, identify three classes of trajectories which are character-ized by their collimation parameters. These different trajectories could be related to the helical structure of magnetic fields in the jet. Through fitting the model, the bulk Lorentz factor, Doppler factor and viewing angle of these knots are derived. It is found that there is no evidence for any correlation between the bulk Lorentz factor of the components and their precession phase （or ejection time）. In a companion paper, the kinematics of another seven components （C5a, C6, C7, C17, C19, C22 and C23） have been derived from model fitting, and a binary black-hole/jet scenario was envisaged. The precession model proposed by Qian would be useful for understanding the kine- matics of superluminal components in blazar 3C 279 derived from VLBI observations, by disentangling different mechanisms and ingredients. More generally, it might also be helpful for studying the mechanism of jet swing （wobbling） in other blazars.

Spectral Reversal and Stratification of the Jet in 3C 273

Quasi-simultaneous VLBI observations at 15-86 GHz have shown that in the classical superluminal radio source 3C273, the spectral index a (Sv ∝ vα) has a systematic variation along the jet. For epoch 1995.15, a spectral reversal was observed at core distance - 1.5 mas, where the superluminal knot C12 located. Similarly, for epoch 1997.18, two spectral reversals were observed at core distances of -1.8 mas and -4.2 mas, where superluminal knots C11 and C14 werel respectively. These spectral reversals are associated with local maxim of the jet width. We suggest that this phenomenon may be related to a stratification of the jet structure, i.e., its physical parameters (flow velocity, Doppler factor, electron density and energy, magnetic field strength, etc.) are substantially dependent on the distance from the jet axis. These properties may be naturally formed through gasdynamic processes when the jet expands into a lower pressure ambient medium.

Periodic Variations of the Jet Flow Lorentz Factor in 3C 273

C 273 has been observed with VLBI for more than 30 years. The entire data have shown that the position angle of the superluminal knots ejected from the core varies periodically with a period of ~15 years. Moreover, their apparent velocity observed during the period 1963 -- 1997 has systematically decreased by a factor of 2. These remarkable properties are explained in terms of a precessing jet model, in which the ejection Lorentz factor of the superluminal knots has been decreasing during the last thirty years and has superposed on it a short-term (~5 year) oscillation. The periodic variations derived by the model-fitting are compared with the variations in the optical flux density. Binary black hole models are briefly discussed to show possible relations of the observed periods to the periods involved in a binary system (orbital motion, spin of black hole, accretion-disk rotation and Newtonian-driven precession etc.).

Refractive Focusing by Interstellar Clouds and the Rapid Polarization Angle Swing in QSO 1150+812

A very rapid polarization position angle swing of -180° （with a time scale of ,-6 hours） observed at 2 cm in QSO 1150＋812 （z = 1.25） was reported by Kochenov ＆ Gabuzda. This very rare event is difficult to explain. We found a possible interpretation in the framework of a source model consisting of three polarized components, in which two compact polarized components are nearly simultaneously occulted by an interstellar cloud, with consequent focusing-defocusing effects. A specific plasma-lens model is proposed which can reasonably fit the polarized flux density curve with results derived for the two lensed components. Some physical parameters of the plasma-lens and the source components are estimated. The two compact polarized components are estimated to have brightness temperatures of -6 ×10^12 K. Thus a bulk relativistic motion with a Lorentz factor less than 10 is required to meet the inverse-Compton limit.

Refractive Focusing of Interstellar Clouds and Intraday Polarization Angle Swings

Intraday variations of compact extragalactic radio sources in flux density and polarization are generally interpreted in terms of refractive scintillation from the continuous interstellar medium of our Galaxy. However, continuous polarization angle swings of - 180° （for example, the one observed in the QSO 0917＋624） could not be interpreted in this way. Qian et al. have shown that the polarization angle swing observed in the QSO 1150＋812 can be explained in terms of focusing-defocusing effect by an interstellar cloud, which occults two closely-placed polarized components. Here we further show that the polarization angle swing event observed in the QSO 0917＋624 can also be explained in this way. We also found evidence for the cloud eclipsing a non-polarized （core） component during a short period out- side the swing. A particular （and specific） plasma-lens model is proposed to model-fit the polarization swing event of 0917＋624. Some physical parameters related to the plasma-lens and the source components are estimated. The brightness temperatures of the two lensed components are estimated to be -1.6× 10^13 K. Thus bulk relativistic motion with a Lorentz factor less than -20 may be sufficient to avoid the inverse - Compton catastrophe.

VLBI Observations of the Blazar 1611+343 at 5GHz

The gamma-ray blazar 1611+343 was observed with polarization VLBI mode at 5 GHz in February 1999. The total intensity (I) VLBI image of the source shows a core-jet structure. The jet bends eastward at - 3 mas south of the core. Four components have been detected from results of fitting, with apparent speeds estimated at 6.7 ±0.7, 2.5 ±0.3, 4.5 ±0.5 h-1c for three jet components (taking H0 = 100 h km s-1 Mpc-1, q0 = 0.5). The polarization (P) VLBI image of 1611+343 displays the polarized configuration in the jet. The mechanism of the curved jet is discussed.