Galaxies: Quasars
An enormously bright object at the edge of our universe which emits massive amounts of energy. In an optical telescope, they appear point-like, similar to stars, from which they derive their name (quasar = quasi-stellar). Current theories hold that quasars are one type of AGN. While there was initially some controversy over the nature of these objects — as recently as the 1980s, there was no clear consensus as to their nature — there is now a scientific consensus that a quasar is a compact region 10-10,000 Schwarzschild radii across surrounding the central supermassive black hole of a galaxy, powered by its accretion disc.
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Quasar Microlensing
Introduction The Einstein gravitational theory predicts that light and all other wavelengths of electromagnetic radiation are bent in the vicinity of any massive body, and it is of course everyday...
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Introduction Galaxies are now known to contain Supermassive Black Holes in their centers. In most galaxies (pe...
Introduction BL Lacertae (BL Lac or S4 2200+420) was known to be variable in the visible part of the electroma...
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