Key points are not available for this paper at this time.
Seventeen quasars with redshifts ranging from 0.044 to 0.828 have been observed through an r filter using a CCD detector. Using a point-spread function defined by field stars exposed on the same CCD frame as the quasar, point-by-point subtraction of the quasar nucleus from the image reveals some of the structure in the nebulosity underlying essentially all quasars with redshifts ⪉0.5. Under the assumption that the quasar nuclei and the underlying nebulosities have the same cosmological redshifts, absolute magnitudes and metric diameters of the resolved structures again support the interpretation that quasars are central events in distant galaxies. The morphologies of the resolved galaxies underlying the quasars PHL 909, 3Cr 48, and 0241+622 are suggestive of tidal interactions with nearby companion galaxies. Counts of faint galaxies in the vicinity of the quasar images indicate that quasars are usually situated in groups or clusters of galaxies which are dominated by the luminosity contribution of the quasar host galaxy.
Gehren et al. (Thu,) studied this question.