The APEX Telescope in Chile has produced a spectacular, high-resolution image of jets and lobes emanating from the supermassive black hole at the center of Centaurus A, our nearest giant galaxy.
The galaxy is located 13 million light years from Earth and is actually the combination of an elliptical galaxy merging with a spiral galaxy. It has a very active star forming region and is a strong source of radio radiation emitted in the form of jets.
The image is the first taken of the black hole at submillimeter wavelengths, revealing the radio jets of subatomic particles being ejected at about half the speed of light. The lobes north and south of the central dust disc can also be seen. The glow to the lower right of the galaxy is the shockwave created by the lobe colliding with the surrounding gas.
The image is a composite made up of images taken with different instruments at different wavelengths. The Chandra X-ray Observatory imaged X-ray wavelengths, and the MPG/ESO Telescope brought out the background stars and dust disc.
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