Fermi Gamma-ray Telescope tagged posts

In the heart of an active galaxy, matter falling toward a supermassive black hole generates jets of particles traveling near the speed of light. Image Credit: NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center Scientific Visualization Studio

When the universe was young, a supermassive black hole – bloated to the bursting point with stupendous power – heaved out a jet of particle-infused energy that raced through the vastness of space at nearly the speed of light. Billions of years later, a trio of Clemson University scientists, led by College of Science astrophysicist Marco Ajello, has identified this black hole and 4 others similar to it that range in age from 1.4 billion to 1.9 billion years old...