Spectropolarimetry of PKS 0040-005 and the orientation of broad absorption line quasar

We have used the Very Large Telescope (VLT) to obtain spectropolarimetry of the radio-loud, double-lobed broad absorption line (BAL) quasar PKS 0040−005. We find that the optical continuum of PKS 0040−005 is intrinsically polarized at 0.7 per cent with an electric vector position angle nearly parallel to that of the large-scale radio axis. This result is naturally explained in terms of an equatorial scattering region seen at a small inclination, building a strong case that the BAL outflow is not equatorial. In conjunction with other recent results concerning BAL quasars, the era of simply characterizing these sources as ‘edge-on’ is over.