The Center of Centaurus A
Explanation:
A fantastic jumble of young blue star clusters,
gigantic glowing gas clouds, and imposing dark
dust lanes
surrounds the central region of the
active galaxy Centaurus A.
This mosaic of Hubble Space Telescope images
taken in blue, green, and red light
has been processed to present a natural color picture
of this cosmic maelstrom.
Infrared images from the Hubble have also shown that
hidden at the center of this activity are what seem to
be disks of matter spiraling into
a black hole with a billion times the mass
of the Sun!
Centaurus A itself is apparently the result of a
collision of two galaxies
and the left over debris is steadily being consumed by the
black hole.
Astronomers believe that such
black hole
central engines generate the
radio, X-ray, and gamma-ray energy radiated
by Centaurus A and other
active galaxies.
But for an
active galaxy Centaurus A is close,
a mere 10 million
light-years away,
and is a relatively convenient laboratory for exploring these
powerful sources of energy.
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.
