A recent discovery made by astronomers using the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has shed light on the fascinating interaction between a supermassive black hole and two satellite galaxies. This discovery could provide valuable insights into how galaxies and black holes evolved during the early stages of the universe.
The supermassive black hole in question, known as PJ308-21, is currently feeding on surrounding matter and powering a bright quasar. What makes this observation particularly intriguing is the fact that the quasar is so distant that JWST is able to observe it as it appeared less than a billion years after the Big Bang.
The team of astronomers behind this discovery found that the black hole has a mass equivalent to two billion suns, and both the quasar and the galaxies involved in the merger show signs of being highly evolved. This comes as a surprise, considering that these cosmic entities existed when the universe was still in its infancy.
The merger of these three galaxies is expected to provide the supermassive black hole with large amounts of gas and dust, which will fuel its growth and enable it to continue powering the quasar. This discovery highlights the efficient and tumultuous growth that both black holes and their host galaxies undergo in the early stages of cosmic history.
The data collected by JWST’s Near InfraRed Spectrograph (NIRSpec) instrument as part of the 1554 Program has offered a detailed look at the merger between the galaxy hosting PJ308-21 and its two satellite galaxies. This research represents a significant milestone in our understanding of the cosmic dance between supermassive black holes and galaxies.
Quasars are born when supermassive black holes at the center of galaxies are surrounded by gas and dust, forming an accretion disk that feeds the black hole. The immense gravitational forces generate powerful tidal forces that heat the gas and dust, causing the accretion disk to emit light across the electromagnetic spectrum.
The team’s findings also shed light on the metal-rich environment surrounding the active heart of PJ308-21, as well as the photoionization processes occurring in the merging galaxies. By studying the emissions of hydrogen and oxygen in the system, astronomers can glean valuable insights into the properties of the gas near the black hole and the surrounding galaxies.
Overall, this groundbreaking discovery opens up new avenues for research into the early universe and the processes that drove the growth of galaxies and supermassive black holes. The team’s research, accepted for publication in the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics, represents a significant step forward in our understanding of the cosmos.
