A groundbreaking discovery was announced by astronomers on Wednesday, revealing a strong and organized magnetic field twisted in a spiral pattern around the Milky Way’s supermassive black hole, Sagittarius A* (Sgr A*). This discovery sheds light on previously unknown qualities of the immensely powerful object at the center of our galaxy.
The magnetic field structure surrounding Sgr A* closely resembles the one surrounding the only other black hole ever imaged, located in the nearby galaxy Messier 87 (M87). This suggests that strong magnetic fields may be a common feature of black holes.
While the M87 black hole, known as M87*, is able to launch powerful jets of material into space due to its magnetic field, such jets have not been detected around Sgr A* yet. However, the researchers believe they might exist and could be observable in the near future.
A new image released by the researchers shows the environment around Sgr A* in polarized light for the first time, revealing the magnetic field structure created by subatomic particles called electrons gyrating around magnetic field lines.
Sgr A* is a supermassive black hole with 4 million times the mass of our sun, located approximately 26,000 light-years away from Earth.
“Magnetic fields play a key role in how black holes feed and eject matter in powerful jets,” said astronomer Sara Issaoun, one of the researchers involved in the study.
Utilizing the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT), an international scientific collaboration, the researchers were able to capture the polarized light from Sgr A* and M87*, providing valuable insights into the structure and strength of the magnetic fields surrounding these black holes.
The findings of this study, published in the Astrophysical Journal Letters, mark a significant advancement in our understanding of black holes and their interactions with the surrounding environment.
