Scientists have recorded the most powerful explosion in the universe
News / / January 02, 2021
Scientists studying distant galaxy clusters have discovered the most powerful burst of energy in the universe since the Big Bang. Professor Melanie Johnston-Hollitt of the International Center for Radio Astronomy Research compared this event in importance with the discovery of the first dinosaur bones. Writes about it EurekAlert!.
The explosion took place near a supermassive black hole in the center of a galaxy in the Ophiuchus cluster, 390 million light-years distant from Earth. In terms of power, it surpassed the previous record holder five times. The burst of energy broke through a gigantic cavity in the cluster's plasma, which consists of very hot gas. The resulting gap could fit 15 galaxies in the Milky Way.
Professor Johnston-Hollitt noted that the cavity in the plasma has been visible before with X-ray telescopes. However, scientists did not believe that this formation could have been caused by an explosion, because no one had previously recorded emissions of such a scale. This was confirmed only with the help of four radio telescopes and other instruments that can capture different wavelengths.
The reason for such an explosion on a truly universal scale is still unknown to scientists. In the future, they plan to conduct a more thorough observation of this cluster of galaxies.
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