The cluster of galaxies “Abell 2261” observed with visible light, infrared rays (background) and X-rays (purple). At the center is the galaxy that was the subject of this research (Credit: X-ray: NASA / CXC / Univ of Michigan / K. Gültekin; Optical: NASA / STScI and NAOJ / Subaru; Infrared: NSF / NOAO / KPNO)
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NASA made an interesting announcement on December 18 about a galaxy black hole.
In the center of most galaxies, they are hundreds of thousands to billions of times heavier than the sun.Supermassive black holeIs believed to exist.Among them, the galaxy cluster about 2.7 billion light-years away in the direction of HerculesThe galaxy in the center of “Abell 2261”To3 to 100 billion times more mass than the sunThere isThe largest supermassive black hole in this universeIt has been pointed out that there may be.
However, researchers are using X-ray astronomy satellites.“Chandra”Or“Hubble”In the central galaxy of Abell 2261, despite trying hard to find evidence of the existence of supermassive black holes using space telescopes and the like.I just can’t find the proofThat is.
Substances falling into black holesFormed a hot accretion disk around it,Emit X-raysIt is said that. Researchers have previously searched for evidence of black holes using data obtained in 1999 and 2004 by Chandra’s observations of X-rays.No such X-ray source was found in the center of the galaxy in questionIt’s called.
University of Michigan, Ann ArborKayhan GultekinThe research group was acquired by Chandra in 2018.Newer and longer observation dataI used to look for evidence of a supermassive black hole that should be in the galaxy in question. However, although I searched for the center of the galaxy, the area where the stars are gathered, and the place where radio radiation was observed suggesting that a black hole was active in the past,After all the X-ray source was not foundIt’s called.
In the research group, in the central galaxy of Abell 2261There is no supermassive black hole in the observed areaOr, if it exists, it’s sucking in gas and dust too slowly.It seems that a disk that emits X-rays that can be detected has not been formed.I conclude that.
On the other hand, the research groupWhy you can’t find a black holeI also considered.In fact, the galaxy in question has been in the pastTraces that indirectly indicate that the two galaxies have mergedIt is said that there is a possibility that the supermassive black hole cannot be found and the galaxy merger is related.
Hubble Space Telescope and National Astronomical Observatory of Hawaii“Subaru Telescope”Observations show that the core of the galaxy in question is larger than expected from the entire galaxy. It has also been found that the most densely populated areas of the galaxy in question are more than 2000 light-years away from the center of the galaxy.
The research group also merged the black hole in the center of both galaxies in the process of interaction and coalescence, but the gravitational waves emitted to the surroundings were imbalanced.One supermassive black hole created by coalescence may have been blown off the center of the galaxyIs pointed out.
The larger-than-expected galactic center of the galaxy in question is the result of the interaction of two supermassive black holes that were orbiting each other and coalescing, releasing the stars in the center of the galaxy to the surroundings. The shift of the star-dense area from the center of the galaxy may have been caused by such a violent event that the supermassive black hole created by the coalescence was blown away.
The research group is a space telescope scheduled to be launched in October 2021.“James Webb”IfA supermassive black hole of unknown location may be foundHe said that the best explanation is to think that he was blown away from the center of the galaxy if he could not find it.
But where did this supermassive black hole go? The mystery is only deepening.
Relation:What is a celestial body “black hole” whose gravity is so strong that even light cannot escape?
Image Credit: X-ray: NASA/CXC/Univ of Michigan/K. Gültekin; Optical: NASA/STScI and NAOJ/Subaru; Infrared: NSF/NOAO/KPNO
Source: NASA
Sentence / Shigeyuki Iido
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