Discovery of "tipped over" black hole surprises NASA scientists

First pictures of Milky Way’s black hole

First images of Milky Way’s black hole released 02:13

NASA researchers combined years of data and new imaging techniques to learn more about a "tipped over" black hole that is moving in an unexpected way. 

The black hole is located in a galaxy called NGC 5084. Researchers have been aware of the galaxy for years, NASA said in a news release. 

New analysis techniques developed at NASA's Ames Research Center in California helped researchers see four long plumes of plasma emanating from the galaxy. Most galaxies don't have plumes, and when they do, only one or two are present. The plumes suggested the galaxy might house a supermassive black hole, NASA said. Spotting both pairs, which formed an "X" shape, led researchers to focus more on the area. 

Using archived data from NASA's Hubble Space Telescope and the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array Telescope based in Chile, researchers found that the galaxy also had a "small, dusty inner disk" rotating at the center of the galaxy, again suggesting a black hole there. Even more surprisingly, both the disk and black hole were rotating at a 90-degree angle relative to the rest of the galaxy, meaning both features are essentially "lying on their sides," NASA said. 

Hubble Space Telescope image of galaxy NGC 5084's core. A dark, vertical line near the center shows the curve of a dusty disk orbiting the core, suggesting a supermassive black hole inside.  NASA/STScI, M. A. Malkan, B. Boizelle, A.S. Borlaff. HST WFPC2, WFC3/IR/UVIS.

"It was like seeing a crime scene with multiple types of light," said research scientist Alejandro Serrano Borlaff, who will also publish a paper about the discovery, in the news release. "Putting all the pictures together revealed that NGC 5084 has changed a lot in its recent past."

It's not clear what caused the change in the galaxy. It may have collided with another galaxy and formed a chimney of superheated gas, creating the X-shaped plasma plumes. Further research will have to be conducted to learn more about the circumstances. 

"Detecting two pairs of X-ray plumes in one galaxy is exceptional," said Pamela Marcum, an astrophysicist at Ames and co-author on the discovery, in the news release. "The combination of their unusual, cross-shaped structure and the 'tipped-over,' dusty disk gives us unique insights into this galaxy's history."

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• Black Hole
• Supermassive Black Hole
• Galaxy
• Space
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