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Collection:
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NASA Hubble Space Telescope Collection
Collection
NASA Hubble Space Telescope Collection
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Title:
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NASA's Hubble Space Telescope Yields Clear View of Optical Jet in Galaxy M87
Title
NASA's Hubble Space Telescope Yields Clear View of Optical Jet in Galaxy M87
Title
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Object Name:
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M87
Object_Name
M87
Object Name
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General Information:
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What is an American Astronomical Society Meeting release?
A major news announcement issued at an American Astronomical Society meeting, the premier astronomy conference.
A NASA Hubble Space Telescope (HST) view of a 4,000 light-year long jet of plasma emanating from the bright nucleus of the giant elliptical galaxy M87. This ultraviolet light image was made with the European Space Agency's Faint Object Camera (FOC), one of two imaging systems aboard HST.
General_Information
What is an American Astronomical Society Meeting release?
A major news announcement issued at an American Astronomical Society meeting, the premier astronomy conference.
A NASA Hubble Space Telescope (HST) view of a 4,000 light-year long jet of plasma emanating from the bright nucleus of the giant elliptical galaxy M87. This ultraviolet light image was made with the European Space Agency's Faint Object Camera (FOC), one of two imaging systems aboard HST.
General Information
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Acknowledgement:
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Acknowledgement
Acknowledgement
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Fast Facts:
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note:
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*Image Type:*: Astronomical
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*Image Type:*: Astronomical
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note:
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*Release Date*:January 16, 1992 12:00 AM (EST)
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*Release Date*:January 16, 1992 12:00 AM (EST)
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note:
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*News Release Number:*: STScI-1992-07a
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*News Release Number:*: STScI-1992-07a
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note:
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*Title*:NASA's Hubble Space Telescope Yields Clear View of Optical Jet in Galaxy M87
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*Title*:NASA's Hubble Space Telescope Yields Clear View of Optical Jet in Galaxy M87
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note:
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*Description*:
A NASA Hubble Space Telescope (HST) view of a 4,000 light-year long jet of plasma emanating from the bright nucleus of the giant elliptical galaxy M87. This ultraviolet light image was made with the European Space Agency's Faint Object Camera (FOC), one of two imaging systems aboard HST. This photo is being presented on Thursday, January 16th at the 179th meeting of the American Astronomical Society meeting in Atlanta, Georgia. M87 is a giant elliptical galaxy with an estimated mass of 300 billion suns. Located 52 million light-years away at the heart of the neighboring Virgo cluster of galaxies, M87 is the nearest example of an active galactic nucleus with a bright optical jet. The jet appears as a string of knots within a widening cone extending out from the core of M87. The FOC image reveals unprecedented detail in these knots, resolving some features as small as ten light-years across. According to one theory, the jet is most likely powered by a 3 billion solar mass black hole at the nucleus of M87. Magnetic fields generated within a spinning accretion disk surrounding the black hole, spiral around the edge of the jet. The fields confine the jet to a long narrow tube of hot plasma and charged particles. High speed electrons and protons which are accelerated near the black hole race along the tube at nearly the speed of light. When electrons are caught up in the magnetic field they radiate in a process called synchrotron radiation. The Faint Object Camera image clearly resolves these localized electron acceleration, which seem to trace out the spiral pattern of the otherwise invisible magnetic field lines. A large bright knot located midway along the jet shows where the blue jet disrupts violently and becomes more chaotic. Farther out from the core the jet bends and dissipates as it rams into a wall of gas, invisible but present throughout the galaxy which the jet has plowed in front of itself. HST is ideally suited for studying extragalactic jets. The Telescope's UV sensitivity allows it to clearly separate a jet from the stellar background light of its host galaxy. What's more, the FOC's high angular resolution is comparable to sub arc second resolution achieved by large radio telescope arrays.
note
*Description*:
A NASA Hubble Space Telescope (HST) view of a 4,000 light-year long jet of plasma emanating from the bright nucleus of the giant elliptical galaxy M87. This ultraviolet light image was made with the European Space Agency's Faint Object Camera (FOC), one of two imaging systems aboard HST. This photo is being presented on Thursday, January 16th at the 179th meeting of the American Astronomical Society meeting in Atlanta, Georgia. M87 is a giant elliptical galaxy with an estimated mass of 300 billion suns. Located 52 million light-years away at the heart of the neighboring Virgo cluster of galaxies, M87 is the nearest example of an active galactic nucleus with a bright optical jet. The jet appears as a string of knots within a widening cone extending out from the core of M87. The FOC image reveals unprecedented detail in these knots, resolving some features as small as ten light-years across. According to one theory, the jet is most likely powered by a 3 billion solar mass black hole at the nucleus of M87. Magnetic fields generated within a spinning accretion disk surrounding the black hole, spiral around the edge of the jet. The fields confine the jet to a long narrow tube of hot plasma and charged particles. High speed electrons and protons which are accelerated near the black hole race along the tube at nearly the speed of light. When electrons are caught up in the magnetic field they radiate in a process called synchrotron radiation. The Faint Object Camera image clearly resolves these localized electron acceleration, which seem to trace out the spiral pattern of the otherwise invisible magnetic field lines. A large bright knot located midway along the jet shows where the blue jet disrupts violently and becomes more chaotic. Farther out from the core the jet bends and dissipates as it rams into a wall of gas, invisible but present throughout the galaxy which the jet has plowed in front of itself. HST is ideally suited for studying extragalactic jets. The Telescope's UV sensitivity allows it to clearly separate a jet from the stellar background light of its host galaxy. What's more, the FOC's high angular resolution is comparable to sub arc second resolution achieved by large radio telescope arrays.
note
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facet_what:
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Faint Object Camera
facet_what
Faint Object Camera
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Virgo
facet_what
Virgo
facet_what
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facet_what:
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TRACE
facet_what
TRACE
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Hubble Space Telescope (HST)
facet_what
Hubble Space Telescope (HST)
facet_what
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facet_where:
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M87
facet_where
M87
facet_where
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facet_where:
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Atlanta
facet_where
Atlanta
facet_where
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facet_where:
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Georgia
facet_where
Georgia
facet_where
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facet_when:
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January 16, 1992
facet_when
January 16, 1992
facet_when
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facet_when_year:
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1992
facet_when_year
1992
facet_when_year
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UID:
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SPD-HUBBLE-STScI-199 2-07a
UID
SPD-HUBBLE-STScI-199 2-07a
UID
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original url:
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original_url
original url
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Release Date:
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January 16, 1992 12:00 AM (EST)
Release_Date
January 16, 1992 12:00 AM (EST)
Release Date
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