M77 tagged posts

Resurrected Supernova Provides Missing-link

An image of the central region of M77 taken by the Hubble space telescope (left). Right panels show the expanded view around SN 2018ivc based on the data taken by ALMA, at ~200 days (upper right) and ~ 1000 days (lower right)
An image of the central region of M77 taken by the Hubble space telescope (left), in which the position of SN 2018ivc is marked. Right panels show the expanded view around SN 2018ivc based on the data taken by ALMA, at ~200 days (upper right) and ~ 1000 days (lower right), clearly showing that the rebrightening happened at about one year after the SN explosion. Credit: (left) Based on observations made with the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, and obtained from the Hubble Legacy Archive, which is a collaboration between the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI/NASA), the Space Telescope European Coordinating Facility (ST-ECF/ESA) and the Canadian Astronomy Data Centre (CADC/NRC/CSA). (right) ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO), K. Maeda et al.

Astronomers have discovered a supernova exhibiting un...

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Rotating Dusty Gaseous Donut around an Active Supermassive Black Hole

ALMA revealed the rotation of the torus very clearly for the first time. Credit: ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO)

ALMA revealed the rotation of the torus very clearly for the first time. Credit: ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO)

High resolution observations show a rotating dusty gas torus around an active supermassive black hole. The existence of such rotating donuts-shape structures was first suggested decades ago, but this is the first time one has been confirmed so clearly. This is an important step in understanding the co-evolution of supermassive black holes and their host galaxies.

Researchers have known for a long time that the more massive the galaxy is, the more massive the central black hole is. This sounds reasonable at first, but host galaxies are 10 billion times bigger than the central black holes; it should be difficult for two objects of such vastly different scales to directly affect each other...

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