The James Webb Space Telescope has captured stunning new insights into the heart of the Milky Way, revealing unpredictable, intense flares emerging from the supermassive black hole Sagittarius A*. This unprecedented observation provides a more detailed look at the mysterious forces at play in the core of our galaxy.
Researchers observed the accretion disk surrounding Sagittarius A* for 48 hours over the course of a year using Webb’s powerful Near-Infrared Camera (NIRCam). The findings were unexpected, with the black hole exhibiting random bursts of varying brightness and duration. Some flares were bright and powerful, while others were faint flickers.
Lead researcher Farhad Yusef-Zadeh described the pattern of activity as “random” and noted that each observation seemed entirely novel due to the lack of a discernible pattern in the bursts of energy. The team compared the black hole’s behavior to solar flares, highlighting the parallel processes occurring both in the Sun and in Sagittarius A*.
The bursts of energy are thought to be caused by magnetic reconnection events, where two magnetic fields collide, releasing energy in the form of accelerated particles. This process is similar to sparking static electricity and is incredibly powerful, accelerating particles to velocities approaching the speed of light.
A groundbreaking discovery was made about a time delay observed between measurements of flares at different wavelengths. For the first time, scientists saw that shorter wavelengths changed brightness before longer wavelengths, with the longer wavelength lagging behind by a few seconds to 40 seconds. This observation offers important clues about the energy dynamics at play around Sagittarius A*.
The findings provide new insights into the physical processes around black holes and could help scientists understand how supermassive black holes interact with their surroundings and evolve over time.
Source: https://dailygalaxy.com/2025/02/webb-spotted-something-unusual-our-galaxy