Massive Black Hole Eats Galaxy Close to Earth!


Black Hole in Centaurus A

Massive Black Hole Eats Galaxy

It’s not every day that scientists find evidence that a massive black hole is  eating a galaxy.  It’s even cooler when the galaxy happens to be only 10 million light-years away from Earth!

Massive black holes eating galaxies were pretty common  place when the universe was young while galaxies were forming and evolving.  It’s pretty rare to see one today.

black hole in centaurus a

The Black Hole at the Center of Centaurus A

The Hubble Space Telescope captured the event occurring in the galaxy called Centaurus A.  Centaurus A is actually two galaxies that have merged together – the result of a galactic collision.  It appears as though the massive black hole in the center of the larger of the two merged galaxies is feasting on the remains of the smaller merged galaxy.

Using a variety of instruments on the Hubble Space Telescope, capturing  visible and infrared light as well as x-rays and radio frequencies, scientists are able to see past the dark dust lane girdling the galaxy and observe the patterns formed by the hot gasses that have been swept up in the ferocity of the massive black hole’s gravitational whirlpool.  It is thought that this black hole has the mass of about one billion stars which have been compressed into an area about the size of our solar system.

The composite image above shows the wobbly wheel of hot gasses swirling around the black hole as well as the high speed jet of material being ejected from the poles of the black hole.

Usually, we have to look hundreds of millions of light-years away to find something so dramatic.  Centaurus A is practically in our back yard – it’s only 10 million light-years away.

Image Credit:  NASA & ESA

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4 Responses to “Massive Black Hole Eats Galaxy Close to Earth!”

  • jimmy says:

    black holes is very intresting.
    please, give more intrested informetion.

    [Reply]

  • makala says:

    i love black holes

    [Reply]

  • George says:

    out I Love Black holes so much that I, made it my hoby to. Finde out everthing, about them Space is my ole life and nothing Else Maders, tninis hole worle Exptone or a few things Like the Planet, Cold Earth, and that is My Best Comment, and I, hope You Print My Biggest, Commet the year 2013,

    [Reply]

  • Harsh Nirmal says:

    Our knowledge within science is limited and will remain so till we are following Elbert Einstein as, nature never established Universe according to his or any other person’s ideas. First, we need to understand that out of nothing nature created everything. At Cern, scientists are trying to achieve God Particle but they are doing so with the help of proton and proton is surely a mechanism arranged by nature. When we are justifying any action and that also an action like God Particle! , we should be very sure about each and every thing as , each of machine is manmade and till today, scientists have not understood that every material is made with the help of physical and aural system together. In this Universe, nothing is singular. Theory of big bang is wrongly recognized as, before big bang there was no mechanisms were available. What nature did to establish this Universe?

    [Reply]

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