Kathmandu: Telescopes worldwide have detected a massive radio jet from a quasar that dates back to the first 1 billion years of the universe, making it the largest of its kind ever observed from this early cosmic era, according to a study published in Astrophysical Journal Letters.
At more than 200,000 light-years across—twice the width of the Milky Way—this radio jet is an exceptionally rare find. Scientists note that while such jets are common in the nearby universe, they have remained elusive in the distant past due to interference from the cosmic microwave background.
“It’s only because this object is so extreme that we can observe it from Earth, even though it’s really far away,” said lead author Anniek Gloudemans of the National Science Foundation’s NoirLab.
The quasar behind this jet was discovered only a few years ago and formed within the first 1.2 billion years of the universe’s existence. Quasars are among the brightest cosmic objects, powered by gas and dust spiraling into supermassive black holes. This particular quasar has a mass 450 million times that of the sun, though its black hole is not considered particularly massive.
Observatories across Europe, Hawaii, and Texas contributed to the discovery.
Source: AP