Scientists at the IAC have actually found that an unusual thin structure of stars might actually be a galaxy seen edge-on, rather than a trail left by a leaving supermassive black hole. A research study carried out by a team of scientists at the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC) has shown that an unusually thin structure of stars, recently discovered by the Hubble Space Telescope, could be a galaxy seen edge-on. In a current research study, researchers at the IAC have actually reached the conclusion that this uncommon structure of stars might be analyzed as a galaxy without a bulge seen edge-on. “The movements, the size, and the amount of stars fits what has actually been seen in galaxies within the regional universe” explains Jorge Sanchez Almeida, an IAC researcher who is the very first author of the post. Contrast in between this “item” and an edge-on galaxy in the local Universe (IC5249): images (a and b) the strength along the track (c and d) and its rotational velocity (e).
This is an artists impression of a runaway supermassive great void. Scientists at the IAC have actually found that an unusual thin structure of stars may actually be a galaxy seen edge-on, instead of a path left by a fleeing supermassive black hole. Credit: NASA, ESA, Leah Hustak (STScI).
A study performed by a team of scientists at the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC) has revealed that an unusually thin structure of stars, recently found by the Hubble Space Telescope, could be a galaxy seen edge-on. This finding goes against the initial interpretation in which a running away supermassive black hole was leaving a path of stars in its wake. The brand-new analysis is published in the journal Astronomy and Astrophysics Letters.
A strange trail of stars formed 8 thousand million years earlier and recently found by the Hubble Space Telescope has been an obstacle to a variety of research study groups. Its size resembles that of the Milky Way, and this very long narrow structure has actually generated several descriptions of its origin.
Above: Image of the object observed with the Hubble Space Telescope. It shows the emission in the ultraviolet part of the spectrum. Middle: Ultraviolet image of a local galaxy without a bulge and observed edge-on (IC 5249). The resemblances are obvious. Bottom: The same galaxy IC 5249 observed in the visible part of the spectrum. The spatial scales of the 3 images are identical. Credit: HST.
According to a controversial preliminary hypothesis, this path of stars could be the outcome of the passage of a supermassive black hole through a substantial cloud of gas. This idea quickly fired the creativity of the astronomical neighborhood, due to the fact that it needs a large set of intricate exceptional circumstances. For this reason, a number of clinical teams have actually continued to explore various, and less unique circumstances which can describe the observations.
In a current study, scientists at the IAC have reached the conclusion that this uncommon structure of stars could be translated as a galaxy without a bulge seen edge-on. This type of galaxies, also called thin, or flat galaxies, are relatively common. “The movements, the size, and the amount of stars fits what has actually been seen in galaxies within the local universe” discusses Jorge Sanchez Almeida, an IAC scientist who is the first author of the article. “Its a relief to have actually found the option to this mystery, the brand-new proposed scenario is much easier. In one sense it is likewise a pity, since the existence of getting away great voids is anticipated, and this could have been the very first one to be observed.”.
Contrast in between this “object” and an edge-on galaxy in the regional Universe (IC5249): images (a and b) the strength along the track (c and d) and its rotational speed (e). This item and IC5249 end up being exceptionally similar in all their physical parameters, which supports the idea that the “item” is really an edge-on galaxy. Credit: IAC.
To support the hypothesis of the analysis in regards to a galaxy, the group compared the strange structure with a widely known regional galaxy without a bulge, IC5249, which has a similar mass of stars, and discovered unexpected arrangement. In the words of Mireia Montes, an IAC researcher who is a co-author of the short article, “When we evaluated the speeds of this far-off structure of stars we recognized that they were really similar to those obtained from the rotation of galaxies, so we decided to compare a much closer galaxy, and discovered that they are extraordinarily comparable.”.
Relation in between the rotation velocity of a galaxy and its excellent mass (grey dots). The object lies simply on the relation, as would be anticipated for any disc galaxy.
” We also looked at the relation in between the mass of the assumed galaxy and its máximum velocity of rotation, and found that certainly it is a galaxy which acts like a galaxy,” specifies Ignacio Trujillo, an IAC scientist who has taken part in the study. “It is an interesting item, due to the fact that it is rather a large galaxy at a very large range from Earth, where most of the galaxies are smaller sized,” he adds.
Upcoming observations will enable the research study of this things in greater information.
Reference: “Supermassive black hole wake or bulgeless edge-on galaxy?” by Jorge Sánchez Almeida, Mireia Montes and Ignacio Trujillo, Sccepted, Astronomy and Astrophysics Letters.DOI: 10.1051/ 0004-6361/2023 46430.