A paper describing these outcomes has actually been accepted for publication in the journal Astronomy and Astrophysics. The first author is Paolo Tozzi from the National Institute for Astrophysics in Arcetri, Italy.
Recommendation: “The 700 ks Chandra Spiderweb Field I: proof for extensive nuclear activity in the Protocluster” by P. Tozzi, L. Pentericci, R. Gilli, M. Pannella, F. Fiore, G. Miley, M. Nonino, H.J.A. Rottgering, V. Strazzullo, C. S. Anderson, S. Borgani, A. Calabro, C. Carilli, H. Dannerbauer, L. Di Mascolo, C. Feruglio, R. Gobat, S. Jin, A. Liu, T. Mroczkowski, C. Norman, E. Rasia, P. Rosati and A. Saro, Accepted, Astronomy and Astrophysics.arXiv:2203.02208.
NASAs Marshall Space Flight Center handles the Chandra program. The Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatorys Chandra X-ray Center manages science operations from Cambridge, Massachusetts, and flight operations from Burlington, Massachusetts.
Located about 10.6 billion light years from Earth, the Spiderweb galaxy is at the center of a protocluster, a growing collection of galaxies and gas that will ultimately progress into a galaxy cluster.
To look for black holes around the “Spiderweb” galaxy, astronomers observed for over 8 days with NASAs Chandra X-ray Observatory.
Chandra revealed 14 actively growing supermassive black holes– a much higher rate than other comparable samples.
The difference may be triggered by crashes in between galaxies in the forming cluster or by an excess of cooler gas.
The “Spiderweb” gets its label from its look in some optical light images.
Credit: X-ray: NASA/CXC/INAF/ P. Tozzi et al; Optical (Subaru): NAOJ/NINS; Optical (HST): NASA/STScI
Frequently, a spiderweb conjures the concept of caught prey quickly to be consumed by a waiting predator. When it comes to the “Spiderweb” protocluster, however, objects that lie within a giant cosmic web are feasting and growing, according to data from NASAs Chandra X-ray Observatory.
The Spiderweb galaxy, officially referred to as J1140-2629, gets its label from its web-like look in some optical light images. This similarity can be seen in the inset box where data from NASAs Hubble Space Telescope shows galaxies in orange, white, and blue, and information from Chandra is in purple. Located about 10.6 billion light years from Earth, the Spiderweb galaxy is at the center of a protocluster, a growing collection of galaxies and gas that will ultimately progress into a galaxy cluster.
Black hole illustration. Credit: Aurore Simonnet and NASAs Goddard Space Flight
To search for growing black holes in the Spiderweb protocluster a group of scientists observed it for over eight days with Chandra. In the primary panel of this graphic, a composite picture of the Spiderweb protocluster shows X-rays discovered by Chandra (likewise in purple) that have actually been combined with optical information from the Subaru telescope on Mauna Kea in Hawaii (red, green, and white). The large image is 11.3 million light years throughout.
14 sources detected by Chandra. Credit: X-ray: NASA/CXC/INAF/ P. Tozzi et al; Optical (Subaru): NAOJ/NINS; Optical (HST): NASA/STScI
Most of the “blobs” in the optical image are galaxies in the protocluster, including 14 that have actually been identified in the brand-new, deep Chandra image. Scientists have discovered that during this time– about 3 billion years after the big bang– black holes and galaxies were undergoing severe growth.
The Spiderweb seems exceeding the lofty requirements of even this active duration in the Universe. The 14 sources detected by Chandra (circled in the image listed below) imply that about 25% of the most massive galaxies include actively growing black holes. This is between 5 and twenty times higher than the fraction discovered for other galaxies of a comparable age and with about the same variety of masses.
14 sources spotted by Chandra. Credit: X-ray: NASA/CXC/INAF/ P. Tozzi et al; Optical (Subaru): NAOJ/NINS; Optical (HST): NASA/STScI
These results recommend that some ecological factors are responsible for the big number of rapidly growing black holes in the Spiderweb protocluster. One cause might be that a high rate of crashes and interactions in between galaxies is sweeping gas towards the black holes at the center of each galaxy, supplying large quantities of material to take in. Another description is that the protocluster still includes large quantities of cold gas that is more easily taken in by a black hole than hot gas (this cold gas would be heated as the protocluster develops into a galaxy cluster).
Close up. Credit: X-ray: NASA/CXC/INAF/ P. Tozzi et al; Optical (Subaru): NAOJ/NINS; Optical (HST): NASA/STScI
An in-depth research study of Hubble information might supply essential ideas about the factors for the large number of rapidly growing black holes in the Spiderweb protocluster. Extending this work to other protoclusters would also need the sharp X-ray vision of Chandra.
To look for growing black holes in the Spiderweb protocluster a team of researchers observed it for over eight days with Chandra. The 14 sources spotted by Chandra (circled in the image listed below) suggest that about 25% of the most enormous galaxies consist of actively growing black holes. One cause might be that a high rate of accidents and interactions in between galaxies is sweeping gas towards the black holes at the center of each galaxy, offering big quantities of material to take in. Another explanation is that the protocluster still includes large quantities of cold gas that is more easily taken in by a black hole than hot gas (this cold gas would be warmed as the protocluster progresses into a galaxy cluster).