Thomas Goertel (Space Telescope Science Institute)

Centaurus A, also known as NGC 5128, is a galaxy near our own Milky Way. Astronomers have shown that it is in the process of consuming another, smaller galaxy. This interaction appears to be funneling galactic material into a supermassive black hole hidden at the center of Centaurus A. This movie combines observational data with artistic imagination to show what the space near the black hole might look like.

Active galactic nuclei

Using infrared instruments on the Hubble Space Telescope, astronomers have observed a twisted disk of hot gas swept up in the gravitational whirlpool of Centaurus A. The supermassive black hole is hundreds of millions of times more massive than our Sun and has assembled a twisted disk of super-hot gas around it. Like a wheel wobbling around a loose axle, this active galactic nucleus fires an energetic jet of material into space. This ejected light glows in X-rays and radio waves and is blasted from the black hole in excess of 10 million miles per hour.

Gordon Myers