What Are Quasars & How Do They Work?

[medgalis]

I am really interested what are quasars and how do they work.

 

[mfb]

Wikipedia can give some introduction, and there are several books about quasars.
If you have specific questions, ask them, but "please explain how quasars work" https://www.physicsforums.com/blog.php?b=3588 .

 

[Naty1]

Via wikipedia:

... there is now a scientific consensus that a quasar is a compact region in the center of a massive galaxy surrounding its central supermassive black hole. Its size is 10–10,000 times the Schwarzschild radius of the black hole. The quasar is powered by an accretion disc around the black hole...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quasar

and be sure to follow links like 'accretion disk' to read more: [There is a LOT to learn, so read slowly and think about descriptions you encounter.]

... the intense gravitational gradient gives rise to intense frictional heating; the accretion disc of a black hole is hot enough to emit X-rays just outside of the event horizon. The large luminosity of quasars is believed to be a result of gas being accreted by supermassive black holes...

so the energy to power such sources is believed to originate from the gravitational energy of black holes...

 

[Naty1]

Happened to just stumble across this of interest:

Astronomically, the most important property of compact objects is that they provide a supremely efficient mechanism for converting gravitational energy into electromagnetic radiation.[

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_relativity#Black_holes_and_other_compact_objects

 

[Lyrassia]

Via wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quasar

and be sure to follow links like 'accretion disk' to read more: [There is a LOT to learn, so read slowly and think about descriptions you encounter.]

so the energy to power such sources is believed to originate from the gravitational energy of black holes...

This seems like a good way to explain quasars in a general point of view, for beginners. :) Wiki is good for general info, but if you want more in depth and complex things on quasars, then search your library or the Internet.

 

[Lyrassia]

Happened to just stumble across this of interest: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_relativity#Black_holes_and_other_compact_objects

That is interesting.