一个超大质量黑洞正吸入高温气体。这一现象给天文学家提供了一些线索,用于研究黑洞的生长和物质在引力挤压下的变化。 Previous findings have shown black holes pulling material toward them, but this black hole, at the center of large, lens-shaped galaxy known as NGC 3115, reveals the first clear signals of hot gas in this new image from NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory. 以往的发现表明,黑洞会将外物拉向自己。然而巨大的透镜星系NGC3115中心的黑洞,则首次明确显示高温气体也会被黑洞吸入,如上图。图片来自NASA的ChandraX射线观测站。 "It's exciting to find such clear evidence for gas in the grip of a massive black hole," said Ka-Wah Wong of the University of Alabama, in a release. "Chandra's resolving power provides a unique opportunity to understand more about how black holes capture material by studying this nearby object." “我们能发现如此清晰的证据,证明大质量黑洞会吸引高温气体,这真令人激动!”阿拉巴马大学的王嘉华轻松地说,“Chandra的分辨率,为我们研究NGC3115的黑洞这个邻近天体,从而进一步理解黑洞如何俘获外物提供了一个独一无二的新契机。” As the gas approaches the black hole, the compression makes it glow hotter and brighter. This temperature rise begins about 700 light-years away from the black hole, allowing astronomers to estimate the black hole’s mass. The supermassive black hole at the center of NGC 3115, they calculate, has a mass of about 2 billion Suns, making it the nearest billion-solar-mass black hole to Earth at 32 million light-years away. 气体靠近黑洞时,由于受到引力的挤压,温度越来越高,同时发出愈发明亮的辉光。升温现象始于距黑洞700光年处,于是天文学家可以就此估算黑洞的质量。据推算,NGC3115中心的超大质量黑洞,距地球3200万光年,质量相当于太阳质量的20亿倍。这也使它成为距地球最近的“10亿太阳质量级别”黑洞。 |