Quasar 3C 66A
History
The radio source 3C 66 was discovered in 1959 during a survey with the Cambridge Four-Element Interferometer. The designation «3C» refers to the «Third Cambridge Catalogue of Radio Sources». Later, it was found that 3C 66 consists of two radio sources. The main source, 3C 66B, was identified with an elliptical galaxy, which later received the designation UGC 1841. The second radio source, 3C 66A, appeared to have no physical connection. It turned out to be not a star in our Milky Way but exhibiting a quasi-stellar object (QSO) spectrum. [662]
Physical Properties
3C 66A is a blazar, one of the most extreme subclasses of active galactic nuclei, whose relativistic jet is oriented towards our line of sight and emits radiation across the entire electromagnetic spectrum from radio to gamma rays. It belongs to the BL-Lac blazar class and exhibits non-periodic fluctuations in brightness that can occur within hours. Therefore, it must be a very compact object roughly the size of our solar system.
| Designations | 3C 66A, QSO J0222+4302 |
| Right Ascension (J2000.0) | 02 22 39.6 |
| Declination (J2000.0) | +43 02 7.8 |
| Magnitudes | B 15.71; V 15.21; g 15.605; R 14.5; r 15.112; J 12.635; H 11.88; K 11.151 |
| Redshift z | 0.34 |
Data for the three nearby galaxies in the 15' Closeup:
| PGC | RA | Dec | Type | Dim | Btot | HRV | PA | Names |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PGC 9029 | 02 22 31.2 | +43 03 53 | S | 1.1 x .5 | 15.3 | 163 | UGC 1832, MCG 7-5-45, CGCG 538-53 | |
| PGC 9051 | 02 22 58.4 | +43 00 43 | L | 1.2 x .9 | 14.9 | 6385 | 25 | UGC 1837, MCG 7-6-1, CGCG 538-55, CGCG 539-1 |
| PGC 9067 | 02 23 11.5 | +42 59 30 | C M | 3.0 x 3.0 | 14.6 | 6226 | UGC 1841, MCG 7-6-3, CGCG 538-57, CGCG 539-3, 5ZW 230, ANON 220+42 |
Finder Chart
To locate the quasar 3C 66A, follow these instructions: About 40 arcminutes north of the galaxy NGC 891, there is a rhomboid of four stars, within which the galaxy UGC 1841 is embedded. UGC 1837 is outside the rhomboid and hangs next to the corner star towards the quasar. Parallel to the north of the rhomboid, there are two faint stars which act as the first pointer to the quasar. The three faint stars next to UGC 1832 serve as the second pointer to the quasar. The quasar 3C 66A is located at the intersection point of these two lines. The constellation Andromeda is highest in the sky at night from June to February.
Visual Observation
300 mm Aperture: The quasar 3C 66A appears as a small dot, which is roughly as bright as the faintest of the three pointer stars. The quasar is said to be variable, and based on its current brightness, it appears to be closer to its maximum brightness. — 300 mm f/5 Hofheim Dobsonian, TV-Nagler-Zoom 6mm-3mm / 250x-500x / 0.22°-0.11°, Edelweissspitze 2571m ASL, 7. 10. 2007, SQM 21.53, Eduard von Bergen