Inflation of 430-parsec bipolar radio bubbles in the Galactic Centre by an energetic event.

Autor:	Heywood I; Department of Physics, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK. ian.heywood@physics.ox.ac.uk.; Department of Physics and Electronics, Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa. ian.heywood@physics.ox.ac.uk.; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa. ian.heywood@physics.ox.ac.uk., Camilo F; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa. fernando@ska.ac.za., Cotton WD; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa.; National Radio Astronomy Observatory, Charlottesville, VA, USA., Yusef-Zadeh F; CIERA and Department of Physics and Astronomy, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA., Abbott TD; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Adam RM; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Aldera MA; Tellumat (Pty) Ltd, Retreat, South Africa., Bauermeister EF; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Booth RS; Chalmers University of Technology, Gothenburg, Sweden., Botha AG; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Botha DH; EMSS Antennas (Pty) Ltd, Stellenbosch, South Africa., Brederode LRS; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa.; SKA Organisation, Jodrell Bank, Macclesfield, UK., Brits ZB; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Buchner SJ; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Burger JP; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Chalmers JM; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Cheetham T; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., de Villiers D; Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Stellenbosch University, Stellenbosch, South Africa., Dikgale-Mahlakoana MA; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., du Toit LJ; EMSS Antennas (Pty) Ltd, Stellenbosch, South Africa., Esterhuyse SWP; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Fanaroff BL; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Foley AR; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Fourie DJ; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Gamatham RRG; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Goedhart S; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Gounden S; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Hlakola MJ; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Hoek CJ; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Hokwana A; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Horn DM; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Horrell JMG; IDIA, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, South Africa., Hugo B; Department of Physics and Electronics, Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa.; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Isaacson AR; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Jonas JL; Department of Physics and Electronics, Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa.; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Jordaan JDBL; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa.; EMSS Antennas (Pty) Ltd, Stellenbosch, South Africa., Joubert AF; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Józsa GIG; Department of Physics and Electronics, Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa.; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Julie RPM; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Kapp FB; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Kenyon JS; Department of Physics and Electronics, Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa., Kotzé PPA; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Kriel H; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Kusel TW; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Lehmensiek R; EMSS Antennas (Pty) Ltd, Stellenbosch, South Africa.; Department of Electrical Engineering, Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Bellville, South Africa., Liebenberg D; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Loots A; Presidential Infrastructure Coordinating Commission, Pretoria, South Africa., Lord RT; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Lunsky BM; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Macfarlane PS; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Magnus LG; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Magozore CM; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Mahgoub O; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Main JPL; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Malan JA; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Malgas RD; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Manley JR; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Maree MDJ; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Merry B; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Millenaar R; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Mnyandu N; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Moeng IPT; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Monama TE; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Mphego MC; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., New WS; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Ngcebetsha B; Department of Physics and Electronics, Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa.; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Oozeer N; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa.; African Institute for Mathematical Sciences, Muizenberg, South Africa., Otto AJ; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Passmoor SS; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Patel AA; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Peens-Hough A; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Perkins SJ; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Ratcliffe SM; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Renil R; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Rust A; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Salie S; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Schwardt LC; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Serylak M; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa.; Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of the Western Cape, Bellville, South Africa., Siebrits R; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Sirothia SK; Department of Physics and Electronics, Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa.; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Smirnov OM; Department of Physics and Electronics, Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa.; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Sofeya L; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Swart PS; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Tasse C; Department of Physics and Electronics, Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa.; GEPI, CNRS, PSL Research University, Meudon, France., Taylor DT; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Theron IP; Department of Physics and Electronics, Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa.; EMSS Antennas (Pty) Ltd, Stellenbosch, South Africa., Thorat K; Department of Physics and Electronics, Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa.; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Tiplady AJ; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Tshongweni S; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., van Balla TJ; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., van der Byl A; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., van der Merwe C; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., van Dyk CL; Peralex Electronics (Pty) Ltd, Bergvliet, South Africa., Van Rooyen R; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Van Tonder V; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Van Wyk R; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Wallace BH; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Welz MG; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa., Williams LP; South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa.
Jazyk:	angličtina
Zdroj:	Nature [Nature] 2019 Sep; Vol. 573 (7773), pp. 235-237. Date of Electronic Publication: 2019 Sep 11.
DOI:	10.1038/s41586-019-1532-5
Abstrakt:	The Galactic Centre contains a supermassive black hole with a mass of four million Suns 1 within an environment that differs markedly from that of the Galactic disk. Although the black hole is essentially quiescent in the broader context of active galactic nuclei, X-ray observations have provided evidence for energetic outbursts from its surroundings 2 . Also, although the levels of star formation in the Galactic Centre have been approximately constant over the past few hundred million years, there is evidence of increased short-duration bursts 3 , strongly influenced by the interaction of the black hole with the enhanced gas density present within the ring-like central molecular zone 4 at Galactic longitude |l| < 0.7 degrees and latitude |b| < 0.2 degrees. The inner 200-parsec region is characterized by large amounts of warm molecular gas 5 , a high cosmic-ray ionization rate 6 , unusual gas chemistry, enhanced synchrotron emission 7,8 , and a multitude of radio-emitting magnetized filaments 9 , the origin of which has not been established. Here we report radio imaging that reveals a bipolar bubble structure, with an overall span of 1 degree by 3 degrees (140 parsecs × 430 parsecs), extending above and below the Galactic plane and apparently associated with the Galactic Centre. The structure is edge-brightened and bounded, with symmetry implying creation by an energetic event in the Galactic Centre. We estimate the age of the bubbles to be a few million years, with a total energy of 7 × 10 52  ergs. We postulate that the progenitor event was a major contributor to the increased cosmic-ray density in the Galactic Centre, and is in turn the principal source of the relativistic particles required to power the synchrotron emission of the radio filaments within and in the vicinity of the bubble cavities.
Databáze:	MEDLINE
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