Astronomers have found an uncommonly lonely galaxy, 3C 297, utilizing NASAs Chandra X-ray Observatory and the International Gemini Observatory. Located 9.2 billion light-years from Earth, the galaxy appears to have actually absorbed its previous companion galaxies, challenging current understanding of galaxy and galaxy cluster formation. Scientists suggest that 3C 297 might be a “fossil group,” the end stage of a galaxy combining with numerous others, making it the most far-off fossil group found so far.
The all of a sudden lonely galaxy 3C 297, found 9.2 billion light-years from Earth, has challenged existing theories on galaxy development. Scientists recommend it might be the most far-off “fossil group” ever discovered, where one galaxy has absorbed its previous companions.
A far-off– and lonesome– galaxy appears to have drawn in and took in all of its former companion galaxies. This result made with NASAs Chandra X-ray Observatory and the International Gemini Observatory might press the limits for how rapidly astronomers anticipate galaxies to grow in the early universe.
The unexpectedly solo galaxy is situated about 9.2 billion light-years from Earth and includes a quasar, a supermassive black hole drawing in gas at the center of the galaxy and driving powerful jets of matter seen in radio waves. The environment of this galaxy, understood as 3C 297, appears to have the crucial features of a galaxy cluster, enormous structures that generally include hundreds or perhaps countless galaxies. 3C 297 stands alone.
Found 9.2 billion light-years from Earth, the galaxy appears to have assimilated its previous companion galaxies, challenging present understanding of galaxy and galaxy cluster development. The environment of this galaxy, known as 3C 297, appears to have the essential features of a galaxy cluster, enormous structures that usually contain hundreds or even thousands of galaxies. X-ray information from Chandra, radio information from the Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array and noticeable data from Gemini recommend that even though 3C297s environments have lots of features of a galaxy cluster, all however one galaxy remains. “We believe the gravitational pull of the one big galaxy integrated with interactions between the galaxies was too strong, and they combined with the large galaxy. The authors can not rule out the presence of dwarf galaxies around 3C 297, but their presence would still not describe the lack of larger galaxies like the Milky Way.
” It appears that we have a galaxy cluster that is missing out on practically all of its galaxies,” said Valentina Missaglia of the University of Torino in Italy, who led the research study. “We anticipated to see a minimum of a lots galaxies about the size of the Milky Way, yet we see only one.”
The galaxy 3C297 has been found to be lonelier than anticipated, implying it has most likely pulled in and absorbed its former buddy galaxies. X-ray information from Chandra, radio data from the Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array and visible information from Gemini recommend that even though 3C297s surroundings have many features of a galaxy cluster, all but one galaxy stays. Astronomers believe this last large galaxy took in the others through its gravitational pull, and may press the limitations for how quickly astronomers expect galaxies to grow in the early universe.
Missaglia and her associates see two crucial characteristics of a galaxy cluster in the Chandra X-ray data. Initially, the X-ray data reveals the only galaxy is surrounded by large quantities of gas with temperatures of 10s of millions of degrees– something normally seen in galaxy clusters.
Second, the supermassive great voids jet has actually developed an intense source of X-rays about 140,000 light-years away, implying that it has actually raked into gas surrounding the galaxy. A third trait of galaxy clusters possessed by 3C 297, previously reported in Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array data, is that one of the radio jets is bent, showing that it has actually connected with its environments.
Despite having these essential features of a galaxy cluster, Missaglias groups information from the Gemini Observatory in Hawaii exposed that none of the 19 galaxies that appear near to 3C 297 in a Gemini optical image, which have precise range measurements, are actually at the same distance as the lonely galaxy.
“We believe the gravitational pull of the one large galaxy integrated with interactions between the galaxies was too strong, and they merged with the big galaxy. For these galaxies apparently resistance was useless.”
The researchers believe 3C 297 is no longer a galaxy cluster, however a “fossil group.” This is completion stage of a galaxy drawing in and combining with a number of other galaxies. While numerous other fossil groups have actually been detected before, this one is particularly remote, at 9.2 billion light-years away. (The previous record holders for fossil groups were at distances of 4.9 and 7.9 billion light-years.).
” It may be challenging to discuss how the universe can develop this system only 4.6 billion years after the huge bang,” said co-author Mischa Schirmer of the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy. “This doesnt break our ideas of cosmology, but it begins to press the limits on how quickly both galaxies and galaxy clusters should have formed.”.
The authors can not eliminate the existence of dwarf galaxies around 3C 297, but their presence would still not discuss the absence of larger galaxies like the Milky Way. Nearby examples are M87 in the Virgo Cluster, which has had large galactic buddies for billions of years. 3C 297 will invest billions of years basically alone.
For more on this discovery, see Astronomers Discover a Mysterious Lonely Galaxy.
The brand-new study was published in the January 2023 concern of The Astrophysical Journal.
Reference: “Powerful Yet Lonely: Is 3C 297 a High-redshift Fossil Group?” by Valentina Missaglia, Juan P. Madrid, Mischa Schirmer, Francesco Massaro, Alberto Rodríguez-Ardila, Carlos J. Donzelli, Martell Valencia, Alessandro Paggi, Ralph P. Kraft Chiara Stuardi and Belinda J. Wilkes, 14 December 2022, The Astrophysical Journal.DOI: 10.3847/ 1538-4365/ ac9f3e.
NASAs Marshall Space Flight Center handles the Chandra program. The Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatorys Chandra X-ray Center controls science operations from Cambridge, Massachusetts, and flight operations from Burlington, Massachusetts.