Background on Black Hole Patrol
Black Holes:
Black Hole Patrol focuses on some of the oldest known objects in our Universe, Quasars. Quasars, or quasi-stellar objects, appear to resemble point sources of light like stars. However, their radiation is much more intense. The typical quasar puts out more energy each second than our sun does in 200 years. What is the source of this intense energy emission? Scientists believe it to be supermassive black holes, many times the mass of our Sun. GAVRT Black Hole Patrol involves citizen scientists collecting data on these objects. Black holes are some of the most fascinating and mysterious cosmic objects. They form when massive stars collapse under their own gravity, creating regions in space where nothing (not even light) can escape. The objects are not really holes, either. They are huge concentrations of matter packed into very tiny spaces.
A Hole Lot of Mystery:
Why study black holes?
- Luck of the draw: Not all material near and around a black hole necessarily falls into it!
- Jet Speed: Some black hole material forms into jets → long columns of material moving at high speeds and producing radio emission, but we don’t understand how.
- Jet Affect: Black hole jets can affect the galaxy around the black hole.
- GAVRT Patrol: GAVRT monitors radio emissions from black hole-produced jets to help understand these processes.
- Common Curiosities: GAVRT complements other space missions by contributing to the understanding of high-energy processes surrounding black holes.