Astronomers captured an incredible view of M87’s black hole jet

Over a hundred years ago, astronomer Heber Curtis made his groundbreaking discovery of the first black hole jet—a colossal stream of heated plasma streaming from the supermassive black hole at the core of galaxy M87. Recently, advancements from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) have allowed astronomers to study this jet in extraordinary detail, ushering in a new era of understanding.

First identified in 1918, the jet originating from M87’s black hole—most famously the first black hole to be captured in an image in 2019—has been the subject of extensive studies through various observational telescopes. Despite this, numerous features of the jet, such as the bright regions and the enigmatic, darker helical areas, have remained poorly understood. Astronomers speculate that these phenomena may result from the jet’s interaction with varying material densities, though the mechanisms at play still require further investigation.

Now, Maciek Wielgus and a dedicated team at the Institute of Astrophysics of Andalusia in Spain have employed the James Webb Space Telescope to revisit the M87 jet, unveiling its well-known bright features with remarkable clarity. They also managed to image the elusive counter-jet, which shoots off in the opposite direction from the black hole.

Wielgus and his colleagues utilized data from an alternate study that also focused on the stars surrounding M87. Given JWST’s sensitivity to infrared light, they faced challenges distinguishing the jet against overwhelming starlight and needed to refine their analysis to filter out this extraneous light. “It’s a classic case of how one astronomer’s discarded data can serve as another’s treasure,” comments Wielgus.

The first observable luminous point along the jet, designated Hubble Space Telescope-1 in tribute to the telescope that discovered it, may be attributed to the jet’s compression as it transitions into an area of higher pressure. This phenomenon resembles the bright, diamond-shaped formations seen in the exhaust of a rocket engine.

The team was also able to observe the other end of M87’s counter-jet, which is often significantly more difficult to detect. Because this jet is moving away from us at nearly the speed of light, it is dimmer due to the effects described by Einstein’s theory of special relativity. However, when this beam encounters a different gas region, it becomes visible, spilling out into view.

This observation highlights the edge of a bubble of material enveloping M87. With the other end of the jet now captured in infrared detail, astronomers can initiate modeling efforts regarding the gas structures present within this bubble, according to Wielgus.