Scientists have discovered an unusual neon shine near the center of the southern Pinwheel galaxy for the first time.
This gas needs a huge amount of energy to shine – more than normal stars can supply. The discovery based on data from NASAs Space Telescope James WebProbably means that the barrier spiral galaxy, sometimes called Messier 83 or M83, has ported Active, supermassive black hole a secret.
The new study, published in The astrophysical magazineUpenDs before thinking about the galaxy. Previously, it was supposed that if there was a hole in his heart, it would be in sleep and certainly does not shoot high -energy radiation.
“Before the Web, we just didn’t have the tools to find such weak and highly ionized gas signatures in the M83 core,” says Svea Hernandez, an astronomer at the Baltimore Space Telescope Scientific Institute, in Baltimore, in statementS “Finally, we are able to explore these hidden depths of the galaxy and discover what has ever been invisible.”
See also: These scientists believe that alien life best explains what they just find a web
An artist depicting James Web Space Telescope
Dust and gas darken the view of extremely distant and inherent sources of low light, but infrared waves can break through the clouds. Credit: NASA GSFC / CIL / Adriana Manrique Gutierrez Illustration
Black holes are one of the most imperfect phenomena in external spaceS About 50 years ago they were Slightly more than theory – Coki mathematical answer to a problem with physics. Even astronomers at the top of their field were not fully convinced that they existed. Today, not only black holes are accepted science but get their own pictures From a collection of huge, synchronized radio dishes on Earth.
Unlike a planet or star, black holes have no surfaces. Instead, they have a border called an “Events“Or the return point. If something comes back too close, it will fall, it will never escape from the gravitational clutch of the hole.
The most common species called a Star holeIt is believed to be the result of a huge star that dies in a supernova explosion. The star’s material then collapses on itself, condening in a relatively tiny area.
But how supermissive Black holesmillions to billions of times more massive than SunThe shape is even more volatile than the typical star black holes. Many astrophysicists and cosmologists believe that these invisible giants lurk in the center of almost all galaxies. Recent observations of the Hubble space telescope have intensified the theory These super -fat black holes begin in the dusty nuclei of Starburst galaxies, where the new stars are quickly assembled, but scientists still irritate it.
Southern Galaxy of Pins – About 15 million light -years Far in the constellation Hydra – is such a galaxy of Starburst. He has puzzled scientists for decades as they fought fruitless to find signs of a black hole in his center.
Web, cooperation with European and Canadian space agencies, is designed mainly to study the early universe, the formation of stars and distant galaxies. But his exceptional sensitivity to infrared light, invisible to the eyes of people, gave him the power to find clues that other telescopes cannot, said Linda Smith, co -author of the newspaper.
Infrared light can shine through a dust, which often blocks other forms of light. This gives an advantage of web in the study of cloud areas where the stars form or can be active giant black holes.
Although the open signals strongly suggest the presence of a black hole, the team is considering other possible sources such as powerful Shock waves Movement through space or unbearable massive stars. Researchers plan to track their observations with other telescopes to view the galaxy in different ways.
“Now we have new evidence that causes past assumptions,” Smith said.