Why is QSO 1229+204 so Bright?
Credit & Copyright: J. Hutchings
(DAO),
NASA
Explanation:
What causes the center of this barred spiral galaxy to light up brighter
than almost anything in the universe? The
quasar
there is a good fraction of the way across our
observable
universe but appears so bright that
astronomers had to use the high resolving power of the
Hubble Space Telescope (HST) just to see the
host galaxy.
HST then
resolved something very interesting. Not only was QSO 1229+204 at the
core of an unusual barred
spiral galaxy,
but this galaxy was in the process of
colliding with a
dwarf galaxy.
Gas from this collision
quite possibly fuels
a supermassive black hole causing
QSO 1229+204 to shine so brightly.
Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell
(USRA)
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings,
and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris.
Specific
rights apply.
A service of:
LHEA at
NASA /
GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
