Radio/Optical Overlay Radio Galaxy 3C66B

This image shows the optical and radio morphology of the double-lobed radio galaxy 3C66B. In this radio/optical overlay, blue colors show the distribution of stars, made from an image from the Digitized Sky Survey, and red colors show the radio radiation as imaged by the VLA, measured at a wavelength of 20cm. This radio emission is from relativistic streams of high energy particles generated by the quasar. Astronomers believe that the jets are fueled by material accreting onto a super-massive black hole at the center of the galaxy hosting the quasar. The high energy particles are shot into extragalactic space at speeds approaching the speed of light, where they eventually balloon into massive radio lobes.

FR I (plumed) radio galaxy at z=0.0215 (65/h Mpc, H = 100h km/s/Mpc). Jets and plumes extend 140/h kpc from galaxy. VLA 1.45 GHz (20cm) image at 12.5 arcsec resolution.

Legacy Astronomical Images

NRAO/AUI/NSF does not hold full copyright for this image. Contact the archivist for details.

Legacy Astronomical Image

3C66

M.J. Hardcastle, P. Alexander, G.G. Pooley, J. Riley

Very Large Array (VLA)

DSS

1991-08-19

continuum

L

20 cm

1.4 GHz

RA 2:23:11.780, Dec: 42:59:30.400 (J2000)

0.133300 x 0.083300 degrees

Contact the archivist for a high resolution tif of this image.

Active Galactic Nuclei Series

Quasars Unit