With a telescope VLA (Very Large Array, Corbella Antenna array), located in the U.S. state of new Mexico, astronomers from the National radio astronomy Observatory were able to see for the first time and get a clear image of the torus of one of the two supermassive black holes in the center of the radio galaxy, Cygnus A. As indicated in an article published in the journal Astrophysical Journal Letters, this observation confirms the theory of the single origin of all types of quasars.
Scientists are not sure what is the structure of this tor, however, the calculation of the ratios of its luminance and the estimated density indicate that it may be heterogeneous. According to the researchers, “donut”, consists of small clusters of clouds of gas and dust with different degrees of ionization and densities.
The proposed scheme structure of the “donut” of black holes
Carilli and his team believe that their research fully supports the theory of the common origin of all types of quasars. In the future, using other telescopes, the researchers plan to investigate chemical composition and structure of the torus of the black hole.
“We are glad that we were finally able to see the object in whose existence we have been long convinced. In order to understand its precise composition and shape, we will need to conduct a new observation. For example, using the ALMA telescope, we can map the distribution of dust and gas inside of it,” adds Carilli.
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