First M87 Event Horizon Telescope Results. I. The Shadow of the Supermassive Black Hole
Первые результаты наблюдений телескопа горизонта событий для M87. I. Тень сверхмассивной чёрной дыры
2019-04-09
SCID: 54.1/q384ge4y
Discuss with AI
Event Horizon TelescopeKerr black holeM87 black hole shadowVery long baseline interferometrygeneral-relativistic magnetohydrodynamics
Figures from the paper
Abstract (AI)
Abstract When surrounded by a transparent emission region, black holes are expected to reveal a dark shadow caused by gravitational light bending and photon capture at the event horizon. To image and study this phenomenon, we have assembled the Event Horizon Telescope, a global very long baseline interferometry array observing at a wavelength of 1.3 mm. This allows us to reconstruct event-horizon-scale images of the supermassive black hole candidate in the center of the giant elliptical galaxy M87. We have resolved the central compact radio source as an asymmetric bright emission ring with a diameter of 42 ± 3 μ as, which is circular and encompasses a central depression in brightness with a flux ratio ≳10:1. The emission ring is recovered using different calibration and imaging schemes, with its diameter and width remaining stable over four different observations carried out in different days. Overall, the observed image is consistent with expectations for the shadow of a Kerr black hole as predicted by general relativity. The asymmetry in brightness in the ring can be explained in terms of relativistic beaming of the emission from a plasma rotating close to the speed of light around a black hole. We compare our images to an extensive library of ray-traced general-relativistic magnetohydrodynamic simulations of black holes and derive a central mass of M = (6.5 ± 0.7) × 10 9 M ⊙ . Our radio-wave observations thus provide powerful evidence for the presence of supermassive black holes in centers of galaxies and as the central engines of active galactic nuclei. They also present a new tool to explore gravity in its most extreme limit and on a mass scale that was so far not accessible.
Key Findings
1
Comparison with ray-traced general-relativistic magnetohydrodynamic simulations yields a central black-hole mass of M = (6.5 ± 0.7) × 10^9 M⊙.
2
The Event Horizon Telescope reconstructed event-horizon-scale images of M87’s central compact radio source at a 1.3 mm wavelength.
3
The observed image is consistent with the general-relativistic shadow of a Kerr black hole; brightness asymmetry is explained by relativistic beaming from rapidly rotating plasma.
4
The ring’s diameter and width remained stable across four observations on different days and under different calibration and imaging schemes.
5
The source appears as an asymmetric bright emission ring, 42 ± 3 μas in diameter, surrounding a central brightness depression with a flux ratio ≳10:1.
Research Object
The supermassive black hole candidate at the center of galaxy M87 (event-horizon-scale region imaged by the Event Horizon Telescope)
Research Subject
the structure, size, brightness asymmetry, and shadow-consistent properties of the central emission ring, including constraints on the black hole mass and consistency with Kerr-black-hole predictions
Publication Details
Publication Date
2019-04-09
Journal
Publisher
ISSN
Cited by
4285
Open access PDF
Access Type
Author Information
Download PDF
Subscribe to digest