Scientists Discover Supermassive Black Hole That Now Faces Earth, Here's What It Means

Pic Credit: File Photo

Scientists at the Royal Astronomical Society have made a groundbreaking discovery that has set the world of astronomy abuzz. A supermassive black hole, located 657 million light-years away in the PBC J2333.9-2343 galaxy, has changed its direction and is now facing Earth.

This black hole, which is situated at the core of a blazar, a high-energy object considered one of the most powerful phenomena in the universe, has caused the galaxy to stretch almost 40 times the size of the Milky Way, making it nearly 4 million light-years across.

A team of international astronomers have discovered a galaxy that has changed classification due to unique activity within its core. 

The galaxy, named PBC J2333.9-2343, was previously classified as a radio galaxy, but the new research has revealed otherwise. pic.twitter.com/8qqnnBp2xK

— Royal Astronomical Society (@RoyalAstroSoc) March 21, 2023

On their Twitter handle, the RAS shared a conception of a supermassive black hole with a jet streaming outward. Along with the photo, the caption read, "An artist's concept of a "feeding," or active, supermassive black hole with a jet streaming outward at nearly the speed of light."

The discovery was made after researchers reclassified the galaxy, which was earlier considered a radio galaxy, and observed that the relativistic jet of its supermassive black hole had shifted its direction by up to 90 degrees, and is now directly pointing toward Earth.

Although scientists are unsure what has caused this shift, they suspect that the PBC J2333.9-2343 galaxy might have collided with another galaxy, leading to a change in direction.

While this discovery has left many scientists excited about the new possibilities it presents for studying black holes, there is also some concern about the impact it could have on Earth. With this black hole now directly facing us, there is a possibility that it could cause disturbances in our galaxy.