The new images reveal even more similarities Between Sgr A* and M87* than the previous. An earlier study of M87* revealed the black hole launched jets of material into space and the current results suggest that the same might be happening at Sgr A*. Moreover, the similarities suggest that some processes are similar for all black holes, regardless of differences in mass and size.
New EHT test observations have achieved the highest-resolution detections of black holes from Earth. #blackholes #EHT #eventhorizon 1/🧵Image: Artist's impression showing radio signals from a distant galaxy detected by radio observatories worldwide. Credit: ESO/M. Kornmesser
The test was carried out by two small subarrays of the EHT—made up of @almaobs and @ApexTelescope in Chile, IRAM in Spain, the NOEMA in France, the Submillimeter Array (SMA) in Hawai'i, and the Greenland Telescope. 2/🧵Credit: CfA/SAO, Mel Weiss @melweiss
The new observations were made at 345 GHz, much higher than the previous 230 GHz. The higher the frequency, the sharper the image as seen here in this simulated side-by-side comparison of M87*. 3/🧵Credit: EHT, D. Pesce, A. Chael
This composite simulated image shows how M87* is seen by the EHT at 86 GHz (red), 230 GHz (green), and 345 GHz (blue). 345 GHz provides a more compact and sharper view of black holes, revealing structure, size, and shape with more clarity. 4/🧵Credit: EHT, D. Pesce, A. Chael
Ultimately, the increase in capability will make images of supermassive black holes 50% crisper and open new windows on the mysteries of these cosmic beasts. Read the open access paper below. 5/🧵https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/1538-3881/ad5bdb
In this pilot experiment, the Collaboration achieved observations with detail as fine as 19 microarcseconds, meaning they observed at the highest-ever resolution from the surface of Earth. They have not been able to obtain images yet, though: while they made robust detections of light from several distant galaxies, not enough antennas were used to be able to accurately reconstruct an image from the data.
The EHTC studied the spectacular flare observed during its second campaign on M87, involving over 25 ground-based and space-based telescopes. The authors report the first observation in over a decade of a high-energy gamma-ray flare.https://arxiv.org/abs/2404.17623
In 2017 the Event Horizon Telescope – a worldwide network of radio-telescopes – observed the supermassive black hole at the centre of the M87 galaxy, leading to the first ever image of a black hole, released in 2019. Now, using observations from 2017, 2018 and 2021, astronomers have found some changes in this now iconic image that could be caused by variations in the magnetic field around the black hole.
