All articles tagged with #galaxy evolution
Using JWST data, astronomers studied the ‘Stingray’ triple‑galaxy system—seen when the universe was about 1.1 billion years old—and found that the enigmatic little red dots may be a short‑lived evolutionary phase driven by galaxy interactions and delayed fueling of a central black hole, rather than a distinct class of objects.
NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory shows that supermassive black holes grew rapidly in the early universe but have slowed dramatically over more than ten billion years, likely due to dwindling cold gas, fewer galaxy mergers, and feedback processes; the study combines multiple X-ray datasets to provide a comprehensive view of this long-term decline and its implications for how galaxies evolve.
Astronomers using the James Webb Space Telescope found that one of the universe’s brightest quasars appears to quench star formation not only in its host galaxy but also in neighboring galaxies within about a million light-years. The study of quasar J0100+2802 showed reduced ionized oxygen in nearby galaxies, indicating suppressed star birth likely caused by intense radiation and outflows from the active supermassive black hole, suggesting a galactic “ecosystem” where massive black holes influence galaxy evolution beyond their own hosts, especially in the early universe.
Using the James Webb Space Telescope, astronomers captured ESO 137-001, a jellyfish galaxy in the COSMOS field, showing trailing gas filaments stripped by ram pressure as it moves through a cluster. The image reveals blue, star-forming knots in the tails and places the system at about 8.5 billion years ago (roughly 5.3 billion years after the Big Bang), suggesting harsh cluster environments were already shaping galaxies earlier than thought; researchers plan further JWST studies to deepen understanding of galactic evolution.
Using the James Webb Space Telescope, astronomers built a detailed map of dark matter by analyzing subtle light distortions (weak gravitational lensing) from roughly 800,000 background galaxies in the COSMOS field. The 255-hour NIRCam observations, with MIRI distance measurements and prior Hubble data, yield the most galaxy-dense dark‑matter map to date—about ten times more galaxies than ground-based surveys and twice as many as the Hubble map—providing new insights into how dark matter shapes galaxy growth and the cosmic web.
Astronomers using the Keck Observatory, JWST and the VLA have detected the largest, most extended precessing jet from a supermassive black hole in the disk merger galaxy VV340a, with a jet spanning up to 20,000 light-years and displaying a wobbling, helical structure. The outflow strips gas and suppresses star formation by about 20 solar masses per year, challenging existing ideas about how black holes and their host galaxies co-evolve and suggesting a possible second black hole at VV340a’s center. The findings, published in Science, rely on multi-wavelength data from Keck, JWST, and VLA and signal a new window into galaxy evolution.
Astronomers have observed a precessing, high-velocity jet from a supermassive black hole in VV 340a heating and ejecting gas across the galaxy, potentially quenching star formation; the outflow rate is about 19 solar masses per year, and multiwavelength data from JWST, Keck, VLA, and ALMA reveal how such black-hole activity can reshape galactic evolution.
The James Webb Space Telescope has potentially confirmed the first observed supermassive black hole escaping its galaxy at 2.2 million mph, leaving behind a trail of young stars and creating a shockwave detectable in space, providing new insights into galaxy and black hole dynamics.
The James Webb Space Telescope has potentially confirmed the first observed case of a supermassive black hole escaping its host galaxy at 2.2 million mph, leaving behind a trail of young stars and creating a shockwave, providing new insights into galaxy and black hole dynamics.
Using XRISM's high-resolution instruments alongside ESA's XMM-Newton and NASA's NuSTAR, scientists captured unprecedented details of a supermassive black hole in galaxy MCG–6-30-15, confirming relativistic effects near the event horizon, identifying multiple wind zones, and challenging previous models of distant reflection, thus advancing our understanding of black hole physics and galaxy growth.
The 247th American Astronomical Society meeting in Phoenix, dubbed the 'Super Bowl of astronomy,' features new discoveries, debates, and future plans in space science, including insights from JWST, Hubble, and ALMA, and discussions on upcoming missions like the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope.
Canadian astronomers used JWST data to create the most detailed timeline of the Milky Way's evolution, revealing a turbulent early history with frequent galaxy mergers and intense star formation, followed by a transition to a stable spiral galaxy.
Using the JWST, astronomers observed the galaxy Virgil transforming from a seemingly normal galaxy into a 'cosmic monster' with a supermassive black hole at its core, revealing insights into early galaxy evolution and the potential existence of hidden black hole populations in the universe.
Scientists have made a significant breakthrough in detecting winds from the Milky Way's central black hole, Sagittarius A*, by observing a cone-shaped region of cold gas being blown away, which aligns with hot plasma emissions, providing new insights into the black hole's influence on galaxy evolution.
The Hubble Space Telescope captured an image of galaxy NGC 2775, a peculiar galaxy exhibiting both spiral and elliptical features, possibly due to past mergers, providing insights into galaxy evolution.