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Hubble Examines an Active Galaxy Near the Lion’s Heart [1]

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Date: 2024-06 

It might appear featureless and unexciting at first glance, but NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope observations of this elliptical galaxy — known as Messier 105 — show that the stars near the galaxy’s center are moving very rapidly. Astronomers have concluded that these stars are zooming around a supermassive black hole with an estimated mass of 200 million Suns! This black hole releases huge amounts of energy as it consumes matter falling into it, making the system an active galactic nucleus that causes the galaxy’s center to shine far brighter than its surroundings.

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[1] Url: https://science.nasa.gov/missions/hubble/hubble-examines-an-active-galaxy-near-the-lions-heart/

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