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Quasar Hypothesis
Someone suggested an explanation for a quasar so here is my rough hypothesis.
I describe the observations and basis before the conclusion.
1) Quasar Definition
from Wikipedia ===
Quasars or quasi-stellar radio sources are the most energetic and distant active galactic nuclei (AGN).
They are quite small in comparison with the energy they put out. Quasars are not much larger than the Solar System. The mechanism of brightness changes probably involves relativistic beaming of jets pointed nearly directly toward us. The highest redshift quasar known (as of June 2011) has a redshift of 7.085, which means it is about 29 billion light-years from Earth. This estimate is made using the concept of comoving distance.
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2) Halton Arp's observations
Halton Arp observed quasars with similar red shifts could appear in pairs around a Seyfert galaxy, as if from their parent.
Their red shifts seem to drop in quantized increments as the objects had greater distance from their parent.
Both quasars and BL Lac objects could be associated with the same parent but the BL Lac objects have no emission line to compare red shifts.
Arp proposed quasars evolved into a galaxy implying it either stays as ejected or somehow changes to that AGN type for a spiral galaxy.
3) BeppoSax study of quasars
On July 18 I posted about a BeppoSax study of quasars and BL Lac objects. Their conclusion was these objects have a source of synchrotron radiation, not thermal radiation.
4) Thornhill description of a plasmoid in M87
Elliptical galaxies (M87) emit jets from their plasmoid out opposing directions along its axis.
These jets are neutrons which disintegrate into proton/electron pairs.
5) Quasars are usually small faint objects in images.
They are assumed to be very luminous because their extreme red shift is assumed to be a great distance so the object is not dim enough for its distance. The distance is wrong.
The basic hypothesis for a quasar: A quasar is a plasmoid like the one in M87 but the plasmoid in the quasar must have enough energy so its jets achieve the observed relativistic velocities.
M87 is bright in radio and quasars are radio sources.
BL Lac objects are also a plasmoid but are never observed to generate the jets along the plasmoid axis.
A quasar is not extremely luminous but its calculated distance is totally wrong. Its luminosity and size are as observed.
The explanation for its extreme red shift:
The neutrons in the relativistic jet from the plasmoid decay into proton/electron pairs which immediately link to form a hydrogen atom.
The electron in the new atom quickly relaxes to the atom's ground state which results in the Hydrogen Lyman-alpha emission line. This wavelength is in the ultraviolet range.
Because the atom is moving at the instant of this emission the wavelength is shifted based on velocity and direction.
The atoms zooming away get a redshift so UV could become visible or infrared while those atoms zooming toward us get a blue shift so UV could become X-ray. In either case the emission line from one or a small number of atoms will be probably weak.
This atom's emission line is incorrectly used for the quasar velocity.
a brief divergent comment:
The shift to X-ray is interesting because I have recently posted (Oct 1, Oct 10) about X-ray point sources at a significant distance from any galaxy. Those remote sources never have spectrum details.
The quantized red shift:
Over time with successive jets the plasmoid loses energy. That reduction is in increments due to the jet ejection process. The jets are part of sequential decreases in the amount of energy in the plasmoid, not a linear reduction over a time span.
There is no observation of a filament from the Seyfert to a quasar. If a filament exists (in dark mode) then with increasing distance the plasmoid would become subject to line losses.
Arp proposed a quasar in a path of galaxy evolution. I am not an astrophysicist so that is far beyond this hypothesis.
For the same reason I do not explain the mechanism for a Seyfert galaxy to eject a pair of plasmoids emitting almost identical jets having the same velocity.
This rough hypothesis is certainly missing details but it covers most of the significant observed behaviors of a quasar.
This rough hypothesis offers no definable predictions to be tested.
These relativistic hydrogen atoms from the quasar could be detected as cosmic rays with the atom having an extreme velocity like from a particle accelerator.
Perhaps an astrophysicist can improve this hypothesis.
I suspect no one has truly considered a quasar (i.e., something else is more important) but this hypothesis has a practical basis.
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