Abstract
ABSTRACT. Relativistic electrons with energy of the order of 10 MeV are present in extragalactic objects showing radio emission. In this work, the effect of a flux of relativistic electrons, , on the population of hydrogen levels is analyzed. The results are applied to the emission line region of active galactic nuclei. It is shown that this mechanism becomes important for /NH > l0 cm/s and that the Balmer decrement increases with increasing /HN in low density regions. This effect on the Balmer decrement is similar to the reddening caused by dust. As a consequence, for those objects where relativistic electron are present, the accepted reddening by dust may in fact be overestimated. Key wo : GALAXIES-ACTIVE DISCUSSION
