Astronomers using the James Webb Space Telescope have observed dynamic flares of light near Sagittarius A*, the supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way galaxy. The constant display includes seconds-long short flashes and longer, blindingly bright flares on a daily basis.
The longest, most detailed look researchers have made around the black hole was achieved by observing it for 48 hours over eight to 10-hour increments, using Webb’s Near-Infrared Camera. This allowed the team to capture five to six big flares a day as well as smaller flashes of light in between.
Lead study author Farhad Yusef-Zadeh believes the short bursts of light are created by minor fluctuations within the accretion disk, while longer wavelength changes suggest that particles spiral around magnetic field lines, losing energy more quickly.
Tuan Do, associate professor at UCLA, notes that previous data from the Mid-Infrared Instrument on the Webb telescope and other observatories have also confirmed changes in brightness. He suggests that connecting these different data sources together could provide a fuller picture of the physics surrounding the supermassive black hole.
Mark Morris, distinguished research professor at UCLA, says that while the cause of the flares remains unknown, it’s possible that the black hole gobbled up a planet a few hundred years ago. However, longer observations are needed to understand how fast Sagittarius A* is spinning and to confirm whether these flares show periodicity or are truly random.
The study’s findings offer valuable insights into the behavior of accretion disks around black holes and could help astronomers simulate such environments in the future.
Source: https://edition.cnn.com/2025/02/19/science/milky-way-black-hole-flickers-webb/index.html