November 2, 2024

Unfathomable Z 229–15: Everything, in One Place, All at Once

By ESA/Hubble
March 26, 2023

Z 229-15 is one of those fascinating celestial items that, should you select to research it, you will find defined as numerous different things: in some cases as an active galactic nucleus (an AGN); sometimes as a quasar; and often as a Seyfert galaxy. Quasars and agns are both explained in information in the links supplied here, however in essence, an AGN is a little region at the heart of certain galaxies (called active galaxies) that is far brighter than simply the galaxys stars would be. Often an AGN is so bright that the rest of the galaxy can not be seen, but Seyfert galaxies are active galaxies that host really bright AGNs (quasars) while the rest of the galaxy is still observable.

Hubble Space Telescope image shows Z 229-15 in stunning information. This celestial item that lies about 390 million light-years from Earth in the constellation Lyra. Credit: ESA/Hubble & & NASA, A. Barth, R. Mushotzky
Z 229-15 is one of those intriguing celestial items that, must you select to research study it, you will discover defined as numerous various things: often as an active galactic nucleus (an AGN); sometimes as a quasar; and in some cases as a Seyfert galaxy. Which of these is Z 229-15 truly?
AGNs and quasars are both described in detail in the links provided here, however in essence, an AGN is a small region at the heart of specific galaxies (called active galaxies) that is far brighter than just the galaxys stars would be. The additional luminosity is due to the existence of a supermassive black hole at the galaxys core.
Quasars are a particular type of AGN; they are usually both incredibly distant and incredibly intense from Earth– numerous hundred million light-years is considered nearby for a quasar, making Z 229-15 positively regional. Typically an AGN is so intense that the rest of the galaxy can not be seen, however Seyfert galaxies are active galaxies that host really intense AGNs (quasars) while the rest of the galaxy is still observable. Z 229-15 is a Seyfert galaxy that contains a quasar, and that, by definition, hosts an AGN. Category in astronomy can be an obstacle!