This is an illustration of a distant galaxy with an active quasar in the center. A quasar emits exceptionally large amounts of energy generated by a supermassive black hole fed by incident matter. Credit: NASA, ESA, and J. Olmsted (STScI)
Using the unique capabilities of NASA‘s Hubble Space Telescopea team of astronomers has discovered the most energetic outflow ever seen in the universe. They arise from quasars and tear through interstellar space like tsunamis, wreaking havoc on the galaxies in which the quasars live.
This illustration shows a distant galaxy with an active quasar in the center. A quasar emits exceptionally large amounts of energy generated by a supermassive black hole fed by incident matter. Using Hubble’s unique capabilities, astronomers have discovered that blistering radiation pressure away from the black hole is pushing material away from the center of the galaxy at a fraction of the speed of light. The “quasar winds” propel hundreds of solar masses of material every year. This affects the entire galaxy as the material snows in the surrounding gas and dust.