The NASA Hubble Space Telescope has captured a terrifying object stretching a staggering 3,000 light-years long, originating from a supermassive black hole.
A research team led by astrophysicist Alec Lessing from Stanford University (USA) analyzed Hubble data and discovered a fiery plasma trail measuring 3,000 light-years, emanating from a supermassive black hole weighing 6.5 billion solar masses at the center of the galaxy M87.
The plasma trail resembles a bright blue fire dragon or a massive electric spark, shooting out from the black hole and wreaking havoc on everything in its path.
Illustration of a terrifying beam originating from a supermassive black hole passing through a star system comprising white dwarfs and red giants – (Image: NASA/ESA).
This bright blue trail is, in fact, a scorching jet, generated as a “burp” from the black hole after consuming matter.
Such jets have been observed multiple times before. However, this is the first instance they have appeared alongside a series of mysterious explosions.
Specifically, the authors found that a nearby double star system is producing supernova explosions at a rate higher than normal.
Supernovae typically occur in double star systems after a white dwarf – the “zombie” of a dead star – siphons hydrogen fuel from its companion star.
Sometimes, due to excessive accumulation, the white dwarf will explode like a massive nuclear bomb, ejecting a portion of its mass but not dying completely as it would in a supernova explosion.
“Something is happening with the jets that is affecting the nearby star systems,” Dr. Lessing stated.
It is very likely that the jets have injected additional hydrogen fuel into the white dwarfs, prompting them to become saturated and release fuel more frequently.
However, it is also possible that this effect is due to the influence of light pressure emitted from the fire dragon, or something else that has doubled the rate of material transfer from the companion star into the white dwarfs.
To answer this question, scientists will need to examine the surrounding space of other jets from different black holes to see how they influence various surrounding environments.
However, it is clear that the “burps” of supermassive black holes are not as simple as they might seem and could play multiple roles in the evolution of the universe.
