Direct evidence of the receding “torus” around central nuclei of powerful radio sources

Free access article

Issue		A&A Volume 436, Number 3, June IV 2005


Page(s)		817 - 824
Section		Extragalactic astronomy
DOI		http://dx.doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361:20042341

A&A 436, 817-824 (2005)
DOI: 10.1051/0004-6361:20042341

Direct evidence of the receding "torus" around central nuclei of powerful radio sources

T. G. Arshakian

Max-Planck-Institut für Radioastronomie (MPIfR), Auf dem Hügel 69, 53121 Bonn, Germany
e-mail: tigar@mpifr-bonn.mpg.de Byurakan Astrophysical Observatory, Aragatsotn prov. 378433, Armenia and Isaac Newton Institute of Chile, Armenian Branch

(Received 9 November 2004 / Accepted 27 February 2005)

Abstract
The presence of obscuring material (or a dusty "torus") in active galactic nuclei (AGN) is central to the unification model for AGN. Two models, the multi-population model for radio sources and the receding torus model, are capable of describing observational properties of powerful radio galaxies and radio quasars. Here, I study the changes of the opening angle of the obscuring torus with radio luminosity at 151 MHz, [O III] emission-line luminosity and cosmic epoch aiming to discriminate between two working models. An analytical expression relating the half opening angle of the torus to the mean projected linear sizes of double radio galaxies and quasars is derived. The sizes of powerful double radio sources taken from the combined sample of 3CRR, 6CE and 7CR complete samples are used to estimate the torus opening angle. I found a statistically significant correlation between the half opening angle of the torus and [O III] emission-line luminosity. The opening angle increases from 20 $^{\circ}$ to 60 $^{\circ}$ with increasing [O III] emission-line luminosity. This correlation is interpreted as direct evidence of the receding torus around central engines of powerful double radio sources.

Key words: galaxies: active -- radio continuum: galaxies -- methods: analytical

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