Abstract
Charge coupled device polarimetry at a wavelength of 660 nm has detected a highly-polarized optical source, which is coincident with the radio hotspot at the leading edge of the southern lobe of 3C33. The optical polarization data perfectly match the high-frequency Very Large Array observations, thus providing the first direct evidence for optical synchrotron radiation from a classic double radio source. The extended structure of the emission region requires a huge particle accelerator boosting electrons to highly relativistic energies (up to 100 GeV) over a region several kiloparsecs in extent.
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Meisenheimer, K., Röser, HJ. Optical synchrotron emission in the southern lobe of 3C33. Nature 319, 459–463 (1986). https://doi.org/10.1038/319459a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/319459a0
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