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Updated December 3rd, 2021 at 17:14 IST

Researchers discover massive black hole in Milky Way's satellite galaxy Leo I

Scientists from the McDonald Observatory at The University of Texas in Austin have recently detected an abnormally large black hole at the centre of Leo I.

Reported by: Anwesha Majumdar
massive black hole
Image: Pixabay/Representative | Image:self
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Scientists from the McDonald Observatory at The University of Texas in Austin have recently detected an abnormally large black hole at the centre of Leo I, one of the Milky Way's dwarf satellite galaxies. Astronomers had chosen Leo I to examine because of its distinctiveness. Leo I, unlike other dwarf galaxies which encircle the Milky Way, contains less dark matter. The findings of the research were recently published in The Astrophysical Journal

The dark matter pattern of Leo I which was measured by astronomers indicates how the concentration of dark matter varies from the galaxy's outer borders to its core, as per SciTech Daily. They measured it by calculating the gravitational force of the stars. The researchers believed that the faster the stars move, the more dark matter is confined in their orbits. Researchers used data from a novel instrument called VIRUS-W in the 2.7-meter Harlan J. Smith Telescope of Austin’s McDonald Observatory.  

The researchers achieved a shocking result when they loaded their upgraded data and advanced models onto a supercomputer at Austin's Texas Advanced Computing Center, SciTech Daily reported. Indicating the findings, UT astronomer Karl Gebhardt said, “The models are screaming that you need a black hole at the centre; you don’t need a lot of dark matter. You have a tiny galaxy falling into the Milky Way, and its black hole is about as massive as the Milky Way’s. The mass ratio is huge. The Milky Way is dominant; the Leo I black hole is almost comparable.” 

Discovery a step forward in learning how dark matter is dispersed inside galaxies

Researchers went on to say that the conclusion was different from previous researches of Leo I which was mainly focused on the velocities of individual stars, leaving the core - the dense part of the galaxy - largely unexplored. 

“The current study showed that for those few velocities that were taken in the past, there was a bias toward low velocities. This, in turn, decreased the inferred amount of matter enclosed within their orbits,” the researchers were quoted as saying by TechExplorist.  

According to Gebhardt, the discovery is all the more relevant since scientists have been using galaxies like Leo I, for the past 20 years to learn more about how dark matter is dispersed inside galaxies. This new variety of black hole merging also provides a fresh signal for gravitational wave detectors to look for. 

Gebhardt highlighted, “If the mass of Leo I’s a black hole is high, that may explain how black holes grow in massive galaxies.” Further explaining he said, as tiny galaxies like Leo I collide with larger galaxies over the period of time, the smaller galaxy's black hole combines with the larger galaxy's, boosting the larger galaxy's mass, TechExplorist reported. 

(Image: Pixabay/Representative)

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Published December 3rd, 2021 at 17:14 IST

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