2023-05-21 06:30:21
A series of observations revealed the largest cosmic explosion ever observed. The monstrous amounts of energy released would be the result of the absorption of a colossal cloud of gas by a supermassive black hole.
The cataclysmic event AT2021lwx
Appointed AT2021lwx, this gigantic inferno was first spotted in 2020 by the Zwicky Transient Facility telescope in California. Over the following years, Philip Wiseman and his colleagues at the University of Southampton carried out additional observations using different instruments, confirming the unprecedented scale of the phenomenon. ” We see different types of massive explosions in the Universe, but nothing like AT2021lwx “, emphasizes the team, whose work has been published in the journal Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.
Since its discovery, it is estimated that this event has generated an amount of energy about a hundred times greater than that which the Sun will release in its lifetime, and counting. The explosion, whose intensity multiplied by more than 15 in the space of about four months before gradually attenuating, is still in progress.
While astronomers initially thought that a black hole devouring a massive star was the cause, the power and unusually long duration of the phenomenon suggest that it was more likely to be a supermassive cosmic monster sucking up a cloud of gas and dust equivalent in size to that of 5000 Suns.
The only objects known to produce such a glow are the quasars, galaxies hosting a supermassive black hole on a feeding frenzy. But unlike that of AT2021lwx, having experienced an initial peak, their brightness is known to fluctuate on a regular basis, giving them a sparkling appearance.
valuable information
Over the coming months, the researchers plan to continue studying the object, in order to precisely identify the phenomena involved and thus deepen our general understanding of the behavior of black holes.
According to the team, such observations could potentially explain why some relatively small galaxies are home to oversized cosmic monsters.
« We thought we knew the main growth patterns of black holes, but it seems that they can also grow in a different way, with violent and explosive episodes », estime Wiseman. « The magnitude, brightness, and duration of AT2021lwx provide us with a unique opportunity to study the processes that occur when‘they absorb matter. »
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