Studies of stationary features in jets: 3C 279 quasar I. On-sky scattering and dynamics

TL;DR

This study analyzes the dynamics of a quasi-stationary component in the 3C 279 jet over 27 years, revealing evidence of a relativistic transverse wave and estimating its key physical parameters.

Contribution

It introduces a statistical method to detect and characterize relativistic transverse waves in blazar jets using long-term VLBA data, focusing on the 3C 279 QSC.

Findings

Jet axis changed by about 21 degrees over 27 years

QSC's mean intrinsic speed estimated at superluminal, approximately 10c

Detected anisotropic displacements indicating a relativistic transverse wave

Abstract

A recent study on the dynamics of the quasi-stationary component (QSC) in the jet of BL~ Lacertae highlighted its significance in evaluating the physical properties of relativistic transverse waves in the parsec-scale jet. Motivated by this finding, we selected a different type of blazar, the flat-spectrum radio quasar (FSRQ) 3C~279, which hosts a QSC at an angular median distance of 0.35~mas from the radio core, as revealed by 27 years of VLBA monitoring data at 15~GHz. We investigate the positional scatter and dynamics of a QSC in the 3C~279 jet, aiming to detect the presence of a relativistic transverse wave and estimate its characteristics. We employ an analytical statistical method to estimate the mean intrinsic speed of the QSC, while moving average and refinement methods are used to smooth its trajectory. Analysis of the QSC position scatter shows that the jet axis change its direction by about $21^{\circ}$ over 27 years and jet mean intrinsic full opening angle is $\approx 0.30^{\circ} \pm 0.03^{\circ}$. The apparent displacement vectors of the QSC exhibit strong asymmetry and anisotropy along the jet direction, indicating pronounced anisotropic displacements of the core along the jet axis. We estimated the mean intrinsic speed of the QSC to be superluminal, $\overline{\beta_{\rm s}} \approx 10$ in units of the speed of light, which, within the framework of the seagull-on-wave model, is interpreted as evidence for a relativistic transverse wave propagating through the QSC. Analysis of the reversing trajectory of the QSC enables the classification and characterisation of reversal patterns, which, in turn, allows the determination of key transverse wave parameters such as frequency, amplitude, inclination angle, and magnetic energy of the wave (abbrev.).