PROPER MOTION IN QUASARS
Our hypothesis that quasars are stars raises the question of their proper
motions. We have noted earlier that there is a continuity in the optical spectra
of ten quasars and those of of O VI sequence planetary nuclei and stars. A
detailed comparison suggests that there is some relationship between quasars and
planetary nuclei. This, in turn, suggests that the proper motions of these two
two types of objects may be comparable. Proper motion of a few quasars have been
discussed by Luyten and Smith and Sanders.
Luyten has determined the proper motions (absolute) of 951 faint blue stars. We have
searched
for quasars in Luyten's list and have found that there are 30 quasars, in
addition to those considered in Luyten et al. and Sanders
for which proper motions are known. The proper motions of those 30 quasars were
calculated from their component values. There are three quasars which have
proper motions comparable to the largest value amongst planetary nuclei. These
three quasars and their respective proper motions (in arcsec/yr) are
- PHL 1033: 0.049±0.013,
- LB 8956 : 0.061±0.018, and
- LB 8991 : 0.050±0.018.
These values may be compared with the largest proper motion reported up to now
for a planetary, which is 0.040±0.003 arcsec/yr for NGC 7293 (believed to be
the nearest planetary nebula). The distance of NGC 7293 is estimated to be
212 pc; from this it would be reasonable to estimate that the quasars
PHL 1033, LB 8956 and LB 8991 lie within a few hundred parsecs from the sun.
Next Section: RADIO OBSERVATIONS, Double Source Structure