In April 2019, the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) collaboration revealed the first image of the candidate super- massive black hole (SMBH) at the centre of the giant elliptical galaxy Messier 87 (M87). This event-horizon-scale image shows a ring of glowing plasma with a dark patch at the centre, which is interpreted as the shadow of the black hole. This breakthrough result, which represents a powerful confirmation of Einstein’s theory of gravity, or general relativity, was made possible by assembling a global network of radio telescopes operating at millimetre wavelengths that for the first time included the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA). The addition of ALMA as an anchor station has enabled a giant leap forward by increasing the sensitivity limits of the EHT by an order of magnitude, effectively turning it into an imaging array. The published image demonstrates that it is now possible to directly study the event horizon shadows of SMBHs via electromagnetic radiation, thereby transforming this elusive frontier from a mathematical concept into an astrophysical reality. The expansion of the array over the next few years will include new stations on different continents — and eventually satellites in space. This will provide progressively sharper and higher-fidelity images of SMBH candidates, and potentially even movies of the hot plasma orbiting around SMBHs. These improvements will shed light on the processes of black hole accretion and jet formation on event-horizon scales, thereby enabling more precise tests of general relativity in the truly strong field regime.
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Event Horizon Telescope observations of the jet launching and collimation in Centaurus A
Abstract Very-long-baseline interferometry (VLBI) observations of active galactic nuclei at millimetre wavelengths have the power to reveal the launching and initial collimation region of extragalactic radio jets, down to 10–100 gravitational radii ( r g ≡ G M / c 2 ) scales in nearby sources 1 . Centaurus A is the closest radio-loud source to Earth 2 . It bridges the gap in mass and accretion rate between the supermassive black holes (SMBHs) in Messier 87 and our Galactic Centre. A large southern declination of −43° has, however, prevented VLBI imaging of Centaurus A below a wavelength of 1 cm thus far. Here we show the millimetre VLBI image of the source, which we obtained with the Event Horizon Telescope at 228 GHz. Compared with previous observations 3 , we image the jet of Centaurus A at a tenfold higher frequency and sixteen times sharper resolution and thereby probe sub-lightday structures. We reveal a highly collimated, asymmetrically edge-brightened jet as well as the fainter counterjet. We find that the source structure of Centaurus A resembles the jet in Messier 87 on ~500 r g scales remarkably well. Furthermore, we identify the location of Centaurus A’s SMBH with respect to its resolved jet core at a wavelength of 1.3 mm and conclude that the source’s event horizon shadow 4 should be visible at terahertz frequencies. This location further supports the universal scale invariance of black holes over a wide range of masses 5,6 .
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- NSF-PAR ID:
- 10291473
- Author(s) / Creator(s):
- ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; more »
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Nature Astronomy
- ISSN:
- 2397-3366
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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Abstract Images of supermassive black hole accretion flows contain features of both curved spacetime and plasma structure. Inferring properties of the spacetime from images requires modeling the plasma properties, and vice versa. The Event Horizon Telescope Collaboration has imaged near-horizon millimeter emission from both Messier 87* (M87*) and Sagittarius A* (Sgr A*) with very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) and has found a preference for magnetically arrested disk (MAD) accretion in each case. MAD accretion enables spacetime measurements through future observations of the photon ring, the image feature composed of near-orbiting photons. The ordered fields and relatively weak Faraday rotation of MADs yield rotationally symmetric polarization when viewed at modest inclination. In this letter, we utilize this symmetry along with parallel transport symmetries to construct a gain-robust interferometric quantity that detects the transition between the weakly lensed accretion flow image and the strongly lensed photon ring. We predict a shift in polarimetric phases on long baselines and demonstrate that the photon rings in M87* and Sgr A* can be unambiguously detected with sensitive, long-baseline measurements. For M87*, we find that photon ring detection in snapshot observations requires ∼1 mJy sensitivity on >15 G
λ baselines at 230 GHz and above, which could be achieved with space-VLBI or higher-frequency ground-based VLBI. For Sgr A*, we find that interstellar scattering inhibits photon ring detectability at 230 GHz, but ∼10 mJy sensitivity on >12 Gλ baselines at 345 GHz is sufficient and is accessible from the ground. For both sources, these sensitivity requirements may be relaxed by repeated observations and averaging. -
Abstract We present the first Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) observations of Sagittarius A* (Sgr A*), the Galactic center source associated with a supermassive black hole. These observations were conducted in 2017 using a global interferometric array of eight telescopes operating at a wavelength of λ = 1.3 mm. The EHT data resolve a compact emission region with intrahour variability. A variety of imaging and modeling analyses all support an image that is dominated by a bright, thick ring with a diameter of 51.8 ± 2.3 μ as (68% credible interval). The ring has modest azimuthal brightness asymmetry and a comparatively dim interior. Using a large suite of numerical simulations, we demonstrate that the EHT images of Sgr A* are consistent with the expected appearance of a Kerr black hole with mass ∼4 × 10 6 M ⊙ , which is inferred to exist at this location based on previous infrared observations of individual stellar orbits, as well as maser proper-motion studies. Our model comparisons disfavor scenarios where the black hole is viewed at high inclination ( i > 50°), as well as nonspinning black holes and those with retrograde accretion disks. Our results provide direct evidence for the presence of a supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way, and for the first time we connect the predictions from dynamical measurements of stellar orbits on scales of 10 3 –10 5 gravitational radii to event-horizon-scale images and variability. Furthermore, a comparison with the EHT results for the supermassive black hole M87* shows consistency with the predictions of general relativity spanning over three orders of magnitude in central mass.more » « less
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The landmark black hole images recently taken by the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) have allowed the detailed study of the immediate surroundings of supermassive black holes (SMBHs) via direct imaging. These tantalizing early results motivate an expansion of the array, its instrumental capabilities, and dedicated long-term observations to resolve and track faint dynamical features in the black hole jet and accretion flow. The next-generation Event Horizon Telescope (ngEHT) is a project that plans to double the number of telescopes in the VLBI array and extend observations to dual-frequency 230 + 345 GHz, improving total and snapshot coverage, as well as observational agility. The Large Millimeter Telescope (LMT) is the largest sub-mm single dish telescope in the world at 50 m in diameter, and both its sensitivity and central location within the EHT array make it a key anchor station for the other telescopes. In this work, we detail current and planned future upgrades to the LMT that will directly impact its Very Large Baseline Interferometry (VLBI) performance for the EHT and ngEHT. These include the commissioning of a simultaneous 230 + 345 GHz dual-frequency, dual-polarization heterodyne receiver, improved real-time surface measurement and setting, and improvements to thermal stability, which should enable expanded daytime operation. We test and characterize the performance of an improved LMT joining future ngEHT observations through simulated observations of Sgr A* and M 87.more » « less
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ABSTRACT NGC 4395 is a dwarf galaxy at a distance of about 4.3 Mpc (scale: ∼0.021 pc mas−1). It hosts an intermediate-mass black hole (IMBH) with a mass between ∼104 and ∼105 solar masses. The early radio observations of NGC 4395 with the very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) network, High Sensitivity Array (HSA), at 1.4 GHz in 2005 showed that its nucleus has a sub-mJy outflow-like feature (E) extending over 15 mas. To probe the possibility of the feature E as a continuous jet with a base physically coupled with the accretion disc, we performed deep VLBI observations with the European VLBI Network (EVN) at 5 GHz, and analysed the archival data obtained with the HSA at 1.4 GHz in 2008, NSF’s Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array (VLA) at 12–18 GHz and the Atacama Large Millimetre/submillimetre Array (ALMA) at 237 GHz. The feature E displays more diffuse structure in the HSA image of 2008 and has no compact substructure detected in the EVN image. Together with the optically thin steep spectrum and the extremely large angular offset (about 220 mas) from the accurate optical Gaia position, we explain the feature E as nuclear shocks likely formed by the IMBH’s episodic ejection or wide-angle outflow. The VLA and ALMA observations find a sub-mJy pc-scale diffuse feature, possibly tracing a thermal free–free emission region near the IMBH. There is no detection of a jet base at the IMBH position in the VLBI maps. The non-detections give an extremely low luminosity of ≤4.7 × 1033 erg s−1 at 5 GHz and indicate no evidence of a disc-jet coupling on sub-pc scales.
- Free Publicly Accessible Full Text
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Accepted Manuscript1.0
- Journal Article:
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s41550-021-01417-w
