The MeerKAT telescope detects 2 giant radio galaxies

A radio galaxy is one that has a supermassive black hole in the center.

Two of the major radio galleries discovered by the MeerKat radio telescope. Photo: I.Heywood (Oxford / Rhodes / SARAO)

CAPE TOWN – The MeerKAT radio telescope, outside of Carnarvon, has made another interesting discovery.

In a discovery described by scientists as “extremely rare”, two large radio galaxies were discovered by one of the project’s projects, the MIGHTEE study.

A radio galaxy is one that has a supermassive black hole in the center.

When interstellar gas falls towards the black hole, it becomes active and releases a lot of energy from this area.

The lead author of the research is the postdoctoral research partner at the University of Cape Town, Dr. Jacinta Delhaize.

“These are looking away into space, up to great distances from the center of the galaxy where the black hole is and where the stars are and these are shining but not in optical light as you can see. us with our eyes but in radio light, which is why we call these radio galleries. “

Delhaize explains what makes this discovery so important.

“The galaxies we found are larger than 93% of any other giants found before. These are very large and are 62 times larger than the Milky Way. It gives light of about 6.5 million light years to get from one end to the other. They’re huge. “

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