3C 179 is has a compact radio structure. When imaged with Very Large Array (VLA), it has two radio lobes, with its western lobe displaying a different morphology and expanding in southwards direction, through a radio emission region. The eastern lobe on the other hand, is found to split into two main features.[2] There is a strong and bright core dominating the central region of the quasar.[7][8] It is suggested the core might be marginally elongated in east to west direction.[9]Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI) observations have found the two components detected on milliarcseconds, are moving at relative velocities.[6] A bright knot of emission can be seen dotting 0.8 arcseconds along the 270° position angle from the core.[10]
MERLIN imaging revealed 3C 179 has a jet. This jet found one-sided, has a knotty appearance and shows a 'splash' knot feature making it somehow disrupted. It is then further spit into two other jet sections which in turn, goes off in two different directions.[7][11] When imaged, the bright deflated branch of the jet is described as either decollimated or expanding towards the path of a terminal hotspot region. The weaker branch of the jet however, is found moving southwest before fading away into the extended part of the lobe.[7] According to VLA, the entire jet is shown curving northwards.[2]
The core of 3C 179 is described having detections of superluminal motion. Based on observations made by VLBI, it has a double inner structure at the position angle of -92°. Evidence has shown the components are separating apart from each other by 1.07 milliarcseconds, later changing to 1.24 milliarcseconds. The eastern component was also observed and is found increasing in flux density by 15 percent.[12]
^Sambruna, Rita M.; Gliozzi, Mario; Tavecchio, F.; Maraschi, L.; Foschini, Luigi (November 2006). "The Jet-Disk Connection in AGNs: Chandra and XMM-Newton Observations of Three Powerful Radio-Loud Quasars". The Astrophysical Journal. 652 (1): 146–156. arXiv:astro-ph/0606659. Bibcode:2006ApJ...652..146S. doi:10.1086/507420. ISSN0004-637X.
^Lehnert, Matthew D.; Miley, George K.; Sparks, William B.; Baum, Stefi A.; Biretta, John; Golombek, Daniel; de Koff, Sigrid; Macchetto, Ferdinando D.; McCarthy, Patrick J. (April 1999). "HST Snapshot Survey of 3CR Quasars: The Data". arXiv:astro-ph/9904106.
