M87 Supermassive Black Hole Emits Astonishing Gamma-Ray Flare
2024-12-16
In 2019, the Event Horizon Telescope captured the first-ever image of a supermassive black hole at the center of galaxy M87. Now, an international team, including researchers from UCLA, has observed a teraelectronvolt gamma-ray flare from this black hole, tens of millions of times larger than its event horizon. This rare, decade-defining flare provides crucial insights into particle acceleration near black holes and could help solve the mystery of cosmic ray origins. UCLA played a significant role in the construction and data analysis of the VERITAS telescope, instrumental in detecting this event.