<p>I am not expert in that field, but I found a number and a reference:</p>
<ol>
<li>A paper by E. Memola <em>et al.</em> on <strong><a href="https://www2.mpia-hd.mpg.de/home/fendt/prints/aah3366.pdf" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Theoretical thermal X-ray spectra of relativistic MHD jets</a></strong> assumes a mass flow of <span class="math-container">$\dot{M}_{\rm jet}=10^{-8}M_\odot {\rm yr}^{−1}$</span> for a central object of <span class="math-container">$5 M_\odot$</span></li>
<li>The paper <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1387647303001209" rel="nofollow noreferrer">The theory and simulation of relativistic jet formation: towards a unified model for micro- and macroquasars</a> by David L. Maier (see also <a href="https://arxiv.org/abs/astro-ph/0312048" rel="nofollow noreferrer">arXiv/astro-ph/0312048</a>) looks like it may contain more insights, but I did not go through it in detail.</li>
</ol>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-03-03T08:42:57.123Z
Cool! The Meier paper doesn't seem to make any mass estimates. But Memola is a good catch! They also point out that the mass flow is a free parameter they set to fit observed data, so given the multiple uncertainties in this kind of model it may not be surprising that there are few firmly stated mass flows in the literature.
Anders Sandberg
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-03-03T08:45:24.480Z
@AndersSandberg I am glad it was helpful to you, and you could makes sense out of the first paper. I did not understand why they ended up with the mass flow, it just looked an educated guess to me, but you seem to be able to put it into context.
B--rian
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-03-02T10:44:15.317Z
2021-03-02T10:44:15.317Z
B--rian
<p>Relativistic jets from accreting black holes are powerful radiation sources, but carries some ionized matter along. What are the estimates or observations of the mass or momentum flow in such jets?</p>

<active-galaxy><astronomical-jet>
What is the mass and momentum of a relativistic jet?
Anders Sandberg
# What is the mass and momentum of a relativistic jet?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2020-08-11)

Relativistic jets from accreting black holes are powerful radiation sources, but carries some ionized matter along. What are the estimates or observations of the mass or momentum flow in such jets?

**Tags:** active-galaxy, astronomical-jet


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## 1 answers

### Answer by username_1 on 2021-03-02. Score: 1

I am not expert in that field, but I found a number and a reference:

1. A paper by E. Memola *et al.* on **[Theoretical thermal X-ray spectra of relativistic MHD jets](https://www2.mpia-hd.mpg.de/home/fendt/prints/aah3366.pdf)** assumes a mass flow of $\dot{M}\_{\rm jet}=10^{-8}M\_\odot {\rm yr}^{−1}$ for a central object of $5 M\_\odot$
2. The paper [The theory and simulation of relativistic jet formation: towards a unified model for micro- and macroquasars](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1387647303001209) by David L. Maier (see also [arXiv/astro-ph/0312048](https://arxiv.org/abs/astro-ph/0312048)) looks like it may contain more insights, but I did not go through it in detail.

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: Cool! The Meier paper doesn't seem to make any mass estimates. But Memola is a good catch! They also point out that the mass flow is a free parameter they set to fit observed data, so given the multiple uncertainties in this kind of model it may not be surprising that there are few firmly stated mass flows in the literature.  
> **username_1**: @AndersSandberg I am glad it was helpful to you, and you could makes sense out of the first paper. I did not understand why they ended up with the mass flow, it just looked an educated guess to me, but you seem to be able to put it into context.  

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