The doomed Japanese X-ray satellite Hitomi managed some valuable scientific research before prematurely disintegrating in space shortly after its launch in February 2016. According to Space.com, scientists have revealed that Hitomi measured X-ray emissions from a galaxy cluster called Perseus, 250 million light-years away from Earth. Hitomi was able to measure the movement of gases within this cluster, and found that a supermassive black hole is stirring gasses within the galaxies at a rapid pace, thus preventing stars from forming.
Andrew Fabian, a professor of astronomy at the University of Cambridge in England, said that Hitomi managed to measure the movement ‘with unprecedented precision, as much as 50 times better than previous instruments.’
Hitomi measured the motion of gas in the center of the Perseus galaxy cluster with unprecedented precision, as much as 50 times better than previous instruments. (Without that mixing activity from the black hole) the central galaxy would be much brighter and have a much higher stellar mass.
Supermassive black holes that occur at the centre of most galaxies release energy that interacts with galaxy clusters. Norbert Werner, a research associate at Stanford University in California said that scientists now understand the role of these supermassive black holes better and see ‘that there is just the right amount of stirring motion to produce enough heat.’
We already knew that supermassive black holes, which are found at the center of all galaxy clusters and are tens of billions of times more massive than the sun, could play a major role in keeping the gas from cooling by somehow injecting energy into it. Now we understand this mechanism better and see that there is just the right amount of stirring motion to produce enough heat.
Study co-author Irina Zhuravleva of the Kavli Institute for Particle Astrophysics and Cosmology, said that being able to measure gas motions is a ‘major advance in understanding the dynamic behavior of galaxy clusters and its ties to cosmic evolution.’
Being able to measure gas motions is a major advance in understanding the dynamic behavior of galaxy clusters and its ties to cosmic evolution. Although the Hitomi mission ended tragically after a very short period of time, it’s fair to say that it has opened a new chapter in X-ray astronomy.
The research was published online on July 6th via the journal Nature.
