A Long-Range Perspective



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1. A Long-Range Perspective

This workshop's scope was designed to resemble that of one held eleven years ago in Green Bank (Bridle & Eilek 1984). It is interesting to compare the scientific foci of the two meetings, to clarify what has been learned (or un-learned!) about energy transport in powerful radio sources in the eleven years between them.

The database is immensely richer, thanks to major new instruments across the whole spectrum (VLBA,  IRAS,  HST,  ROSAT,  ASCA,  GRO).  We also have better data from old instruments, due to faster detectors, better imaging methods, and more capable computers. Imaging, photometry, polarimetry and spectroscopy that were available in 1984 for only a few, bright, sources now exist for more representative, and deeper, samples (e.g., Ledlow & Owen, these Proceedings; Owen et al., these Proceedings). The brightest, and best-resolved objects have been studied at more wavelengths and better resolutions (e.g.,  Cygnus A-Carilli et al., these Proceedings; M87-Biretta, these Proceedings). VLBI imaging of parsec-scale jets has been extended to small but representative samples of the nuclei in lobe-dominated FR II sources and plumed FR I sources (see Pearson, these Proceedings). What have these advances told us about energy transport in radio galaxies and quasars?



Alan Bridle
Wed Apr 10 10:19:46 EDT 1996