Radio Galaxies are among the most spectacular manifestations of activity. Soon after their discovery it was quickly realized that there are two basic structural types: the edge-brightened or Fanaroff-Riley II type and the edge-darkened I type that often have intense jets. In this project you will research whether the differences are due to intrinsic causes or a consequence of differences in the environment in which the jets propagate. What are the key findings that support each? You should discuss host galaxy studies in various bands, their environments, properties of the radio structures, basic correlations linking radio and optical properties and theoretical models for the radio structures. For high marks you should research the famous 3CRR sample, www.jb.man.ac.uk/atlas (JPEG images are at www.jb.man.ac.uk/atlas/icon.html) using the listed radio www.jb.man.ac.uk/atlas/basic.html and optical www.jb.man.ac.uk/atlas/optical.html parameters to derive properties and any correlations that distinguish FR-I and FR-II types for redshifts z < 0.1.

Below are some useful references that you may start off with.

On the physics of AGN jets
A short note on FR-I/FR-II dichotomy (2001)
A recent paper touching upon the FR-I/FR-II issues
The classic powerful radio galaxy: Cygnus A. This reference is meant as a general introduction to radio galaxies.

"The Physics of Extragalactic Radio Sources" 2001, by David S. de Young