Massive Black Hole Awakens, in a Galaxy Far, Far Away.
'The Guardian' reports that astronomers have
traced the mysterious brightening of a distant
galaxy to the awakening of a massive black hole. .
The black hole at the center of
the remote star system is one million
times more massive than our own sun. .
At the end of 2019, decades of unremarkable observations
of the the distant galaxy in the constellation Virgo
changed when a dramatic surge in luminosity was detected. .
This significant increase in brightness has persisted
to this day, and researchers now believe that
they are witnessing an event never seen before.
We discovered this source at
the moment it started to show
these variations in luminosity. It’s the
first time we’ve see this in real time, Dr Paula Sanchez-Saez, Staff astronomer at the European Southern Observatory headquarters in Garching, Germany, via 'The Guardian'.
In 2019, when the Zwicky Transient Facility first recorded
the sudden increase in brightness, scientists scrambled to
understand more about the galaxy's unprecedented behavior.
Observations revealed that the galaxy doubled in brightness
in mid-infrared wavelengths, while ultraviolet
brightness increased by four times and X-rays by ten. .
Researchers say the most likely explanation would be the
creation of an “active galactic nucleus,” which occurs when
a black hole begins consuming the material surrounding it.
The team believe the change could also be related to an
exotic form of "tidal disruption event," meaning a star was
ripped apart after venturing too close to the black hole.
With the data we have at
the moment, it’s impossible
to disentangle which of these
scenarios is real. We need to
keep monitoring the source, Dr Paula Sanchez-Saez, Staff astronomer at the European Southern Observatory headquarters in Garching, Germany, via 'The Guardian'
'The Guardian' reports that astronomers have
traced the mysterious brightening of a distant
galaxy to the awakening of a massive black hole. .
The black hole at the center of
the remote star system is one million
times more massive than our own sun. .
At the end of 2019, decades of unremarkable observations
of the the distant galaxy in the constellation Virgo
changed when a dramatic surge in luminosity was detected. .
This significant increase in brightness has persisted
to this day, and researchers now believe that
they are witnessing an event never seen before.
We discovered this source at
the moment it started to show
these variations in luminosity. It’s the
first time we’ve see this in real time, Dr Paula Sanchez-Saez, Staff astronomer at the European Southern Observatory headquarters in Garching, Germany, via 'The Guardian'.
In 2019, when the Zwicky Transient Facility first recorded
the sudden increase in brightness, scientists scrambled to
understand more about the galaxy's unprecedented behavior.
Observations revealed that the galaxy doubled in brightness
in mid-infrared wavelengths, while ultraviolet
brightness increased by four times and X-rays by ten. .
Researchers say the most likely explanation would be the
creation of an “active galactic nucleus,” which occurs when
a black hole begins consuming the material surrounding it.
The team believe the change could also be related to an
exotic form of "tidal disruption event," meaning a star was
ripped apart after venturing too close to the black hole.
With the data we have at
the moment, it’s impossible
to disentangle which of these
scenarios is real. We need to
keep monitoring the source, Dr Paula Sanchez-Saez, Staff astronomer at the European Southern Observatory headquarters in Garching, Germany, via 'The Guardian'
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