Astronomy Picture of the Day
Astronomy Picture of the Day
Discover the cosmos! [1] Each day a different image or photograph of our
fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a
professional astronomer.
2019 March 5
[2]
X-Ray Superbubbles in Galaxy NGC 3079
Image Credit: X-ray: NASA [3] , CXC [4] , U. Michigan [5] , J-T Li [6] et al.
[7] ; Optical: NASA [8] , STScI [9]
Explanation: What created these huge galactic superbubbles? Two of these
unusual bubbles [10] , each spanning thousands of light-years [11] , were
recently discovered near the center of spiral galaxy NGC 3079 [12] . The
superbubbles [13] , shown in purple on the image right, are so hot they emit
X-rays detected by NASA [14] 's Earth-orbiting Chandra X-Ray Observatory [15]
. Since the bubbles straddle the center of NGC 3079, a leading hypothesis [16]
is that they were somehow created by the interaction of the central
supermassive black hole [17] with surrounding gas. Alternatively, the
superbubbles [18] might have been created primarily by the energetic winds
[19] from many young and hot stars near that galaxy's center. The only similar
known phenomenon is the gamma-ray emitting Fermi bubbles [20] emanating from
the center of our Milky Way Galaxy, discovered 10 years ago [21] in images
taken by NASA's Fermi satellite [22] . Research into the nature of the NGC
3079 [23] superbubbles will surely continue, as well as searches for
high-energy superbubbles in other galaxies.
Tomorrow's picture: strangely spotless sun
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Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff [35] (MTU [36] ) & Jerry Bonnell [37]
(UMCP [38] )
NASA Official: Phillip Newman Specific rights apply [39] .
NASA Web Privacy Policy and Important Notices [40]
A service of: ASD [41] at NASA [42] / GSFC [43]
& Michigan Tech. U. [44]
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Site notes:
[1] archivepix.html
[2] image/1903/ngc3079Superbubbles_chandra_1080.jpg
[3] https://www.nasa.gov
[4] http://cxc.harvard.edu/
[5] https://lsa.umich.edu/astro
[6]
https://lsa.umich.edu/astro/people/research-s...
jiangtal.html
[7] http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2019arXiv190110...
[8] https://www.nasa.gov/
[9] http://www.stsci.edu/
[10] http://chandra.si.edu/photo/2019/ngc3079/
[11]
https://www.grc.nasa.gov/www/k-12/Numbers/Mat...
how_long_is_a_light_year.htm
[12] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NGC_3079
[13] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hkgOh5jw3fg
[14] https://www.nasa.gov
[15] http://chandra.harvard.edu/about/
[16] http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2019arXiv190110...
[17] http://astronomy.swin.edu.au/cosmos/s/superma...
[18] ap170625.html
[19] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stellar_wind
[20] ap101110.html
[21] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sXmPxSP225Y
[22] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fermi_Gamma-ray...
[23] ap041016.html
[24] ap190304.html
[25] archivepix.html
[26] lib/apsubmit2015.html
[27] lib/aptree.html
[28] https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/apod/apo...
[29] calendar/allyears.html
[30] /apod.rss
[31] lib/edlinks.html
[32] lib/about_apod.html
[33] http://asterisk.apod.com/discuss_apod.php?dat...
[34] ap190306.html
[35] http://www.phy.mtu.edu/faculty/Nemiroff.html
[36] http://www.phy.mtu.edu/
[37] https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/htmltest/jbonnel...
[38] http://www.astro.umd.edu/
[39] lib/about_apod.html#srapply
[40] https://www.nasa.gov/about/highlights/HP_Priv...
[41] https://astrophysics.gsfc.nasa.gov/
[42] https://www.nasa.gov/
[43] https://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/
[44] http://www.mtu.edu/
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