An Overview of Blazar Variability

dc.creatorUrry, C. Megan
dc.date1996-09-03
dc.date.accessioned2026-07-25T20:12:55Z
dc.descriptionBlazars are characterized by rapid variability at virtually all wavelengths from radio through TeV gamma-rays. The challenge since their discovery has been to understand the origin of their luminous, apparently nonthermal, nuclear emission. Considerable progress has been made in recent years thanks to a handful of multiwavelength monitoring campaigns with high enough temporal sampling to resolve the most rapid variations. The best data for a few objects have shown a variety of behaviors, for the most part commensurate with synchrotron and Compton-scattered emission from a relativistic jet, though better data for more blazars are still clearly needed. In particular, the origin of the seed photons that are upscattered to gamma-ray energies remains unclear. The latest multiwavelength light curves for the BL Lac object PKS2155-304 appear to rule out synchrotron emission from a homogeneous source.
dc.description12 pages, 6 figures, description, uses paspconf macro (latex file with encapsulated postscript). Invited review talk at the Miami meeting on Blazar Variability (February 1996).
dc.identifierhttps://arxiv.org/abs/astro-ph/9609023
dc.identifierhttp://arxiv.org/abs/astro-ph/9609023
dc.identifier.urihttps://dspace.dare.co.zw/handle/123456789/69659
dc.subjectAstrophysics
dc.titleAn Overview of Blazar Variability
dc.typetext

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