A black hole inside a distant spiral galaxy is devouring material from the universe around it and creating winds at speeds never before seen by astronomers.
The European Space Agency said that the black hole inside NGC 3783 has the mass of 30 million suns. The black hole consumes nearby material to power an active galactic nucleus at the center of the galaxy, the ESA said in a news release. The nucleus is "an extremely bright and active region" that sends out powerful jets and winds, the agency said.
One powerful wind was measured at 60,000 kilometers per second, or 130 million piles per hour, about 20% of the speed of light.
"We've not watched a black hole create winds this speedily before," said Liyi Gu at Space Research Organisation Netherlands (SRON), in a statement. Gu led the international research team. "For the first time, we've seen how a rapid burst of X-ray light from a black hole immediately triggers ultra-fast winds, with these winds forming in just a single day."
Researcher Matteo Guainazzi said the winds around the black hole were created as the nucleus' tangled magnetic field suddenly untwisted, creating something similar to the coronal mass ejections that erupt from the sun "but on a scale almost too big to imagine."
The similarity between black holes and the sun makes "these mysterious objects seem a little less alien," the ESA said. Project scientist Erik Kuulkers said the discovery "suggests that solar and high-energy physics may work in surprisingly familiar ways throughout the universe."
Winds from active galactic nuclei play a role in how the galaxies they are situated within develop, said ESA research fellow Camille Diez. Learning more about the nuclei and how they behave will lead to a better understanding of space, Diez said.
"Because they're so influential, knowing more about the magnetism of AGNs, and how they whip up winds such as these, is key to understanding the history of galaxies throughout the Universe," Diez said.
Republican and Democratic strategists react to Marjorie Taylor Greene's comments on Trump
Marjorie Taylor Greene: The 2025 60 Minutes Interview
Man who died on cruise ship served 33 alcoholic drinks "in a matter of hours," lawsuit alleges
latest_posts
- 1
The Best Web-based Courses for Ability Advancement - 2Tatiana Schlossberg, JFK's granddaughter, dies at 35 after terminal cancer diagnosis
- 3Figure out how to Keep up with Your Dental Inserts for Long haul Achievement
- 4‘The White Lotus’ sparked online interest in risky anxiety pills, study says
- 5Figure out How to Keep up with Oral Wellbeing During Pregnancy
- Misjudged Objections For Solo Voyagers
- One spent $20 on candy. Another paid $700 for a custom costume. Here's how Halloween costs stacked up this year.
- Gym tied to outbreak of obscure disease that spreads through mist
- An ex-FBI agent analyzes what we learned from Savannah Guthrie's 'Today' show interview amid the search for her mother Nancy
- 6 Hints to Upgrade Your Charm, In addition to Your Mentality
- 6 Popular Men's Aromas On the planet
- Collierville residents with no power as temperatures plunge
- Los Angeles County sees significant uptick in norovirus cases, officials say
- The most effective method to Succeed in Your Web based Advertising Degree: Procedures for Progress
