Extended Emission-Line Regions: Remnants of Quasar Superwinds?
Hai Fu (Caltech)

Black holes are not only an integral component of galaxies, but they
also appear to have played a fundamental role in galaxy evolution. It
is theorized that galaxy-scale feedback from high-redshift quasars is
key to understanding the properties of the most massive galaxies
today. However, direct observations of the feedback have been lacking.
Our observations on the extended nebulae around low-redshift quasars
show that recent quasar-driven superwinds have drastically altered
their environments. The superwind is capable of ejecting most of the
interstellar medium to large distances, demonstrating an efficient
mechanism that can regulate both star formation and black hole growth.
Such superwinds provide local analogs of the quasar feedback
hypothesized to have happened in the early universe.

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