3C 380

3C 380 is a quasar, a type of active galactic nucleus (AGN). Quasars are extremely luminous objects located at the centers of some galaxies, powered by supermassive black holes accreting matter. This accretion process heats the surrounding gas to extremely high temperatures, causing it to emit vast amounts of energy across the electromagnetic spectrum, including radio waves, infrared radiation, visible light, ultraviolet radiation, and X-rays.

3C 380 is a powerful radio source, hence its inclusion in the Third Cambridge Catalogue of Radio Sources (3C). It exhibits variability in its emission, which is a characteristic feature of quasars. The variability can occur over a range of timescales, from days to years, and is thought to be related to changes in the accretion rate or the structure of the accretion disk around the supermassive black hole. Spectroscopic studies of 3C 380 reveal broad emission lines, indicative of the rapidly moving gas in the vicinity of the black hole. The redshift of 3C 380 indicates that it is at a considerable cosmological distance from Earth.