Astronomers Trace M87 Black Hole Jet to Region Near Its Shadow

Astronomers have identified the likely origin point of a jet extending from the supermassive black hole M87* using advanced observations from the Event Horizon Telescope network.

The research traced the jet, which stretches for approximately 3,000 light-years, back to a compact area close to the black hole’s ring structure. The study relied on data collected in 2021, utilizing Very Long Baseline Interferometry to connect the glowing ring, also known as the black hole’s shadow, with the base of the jet.

Analysis pinpointed a compact emission region within about 0.09 light-years of the black hole as the probable site where the jet originates. This finding provides a more precise location for the launching point of the jet compared to previous studies.

The enhanced imaging was made possible by integrating ALMA and additional telescopes into the Event Horizon Telescope network. This expanded configuration improved both sensitivity and coverage, allowing astronomers to resolve the black hole’s ring and the jet at the same time.

What the numbers show

• M87 is located about 55 million light-years from Earth
• The black hole’s mass is roughly six billion times that of the Sun
• The jet extends for nearly 3,000 light-years from M87*

M87, the galaxy hosting the supermassive black hole, sits at a distance of approximately 55 million light-years from Earth. The central black hole, known as M87*, has a mass estimated at around six billion times that of the Sun.

The study’s results were published in the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics. The research team used the improved capabilities of the telescope network to achieve the necessary resolution for this analysis.

By linking the jet’s base to a region near the black hole’s ring, astronomers have advanced the understanding of jet formation in supermassive black holes. The use of multiple telescopes in the network was essential for capturing both the jet and the shadow in the same observations.

The findings represent a step in mapping the physical processes occurring near supermassive black holes. The methodology demonstrated in this study may be applied to future observations of similar cosmic phenomena.

* This article is based on publicly available information at the time of writing.