A Northwestern University-led team of astrophysicists has made a groundbreaking discovery about the supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way using NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope. The research reveals that the black hole is emitting constant streams of flares with varying intensity, defying expectations.
The study found that the flares occur without any periods of rest, ranging from brief seconds-long flickers to massive eruptions that last daily. These events are not confined to specific timeframes and have been observed multiple times throughout 2023 and 2024.
Farhad Yusef-Zadeh, lead author of the study, stated, “Our black hole is unique in its constant activity. We observed changes every observation and never saw anything stay the same.” The research team tracked the black hole’s behavior over a period of nearly two years using the JWST’s near infrared camera.
This finding has significant implications for understanding black holes, their interactions with their surroundings, and the dynamics of our galaxy. The study was published in The Astrophysical Journal Letters on February 18th.
Source: https://news.northwestern.edu/stories/2025/02/flickers-and-flares-milky-ways-central-black-hole-constantly-bubbles-with-light