Radio Galaxy Zoo Talk

Blackhole

  • throughgeorgeseyes by throughgeorgeseyes

    Is this evidence of a black hole?

    Posted

  • JeanTate by JeanTate

    Welcome to Radio Galaxy Zoo, throughgeorgeseyes! 😃

    As WizardHowl notes, this is a very nice triple, which is a pair of radio lobes with a (smallish, ~circular) central source.

    The central source is at the same position on the sky as the optical source, SDSS J141042.41+155334.9:

    enter image description here

    As WizardHowl says, it's a very faint galaxy! However, in its nucleus there is a supermassive black hole, and the interaction of the black hole's gravity with gas and dust (and perhaps a 'shredded star' or two!) around it produces a lot of radio waves and also two jets. Those jets, when they are slowed down by the hot gas in between galaxies (and far from the central galaxy - called a host - itself) produces the two lobes.

    So, in short, yes, this is evidence of a black hole!

    Happy hunting.

    Posted