Stellar Chemistry Transformation: Recent Observations Indicate that Supermassive Black Holes Modify the Chemical Composition of Galaxies

New data gathered by ALMA (Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array) has shed light on the significant role supermassive black holes play in altering the chemical makeup of their host galaxies. The observations indicate that these black holes contribute to the disintegration of some molecular structures while amplifying the presence of others within the galaxy they inhabit.

Recent scholarly work has shown that the supermassive black hole at the core of a galaxy has a profound impact on the chemical makeup of the galaxy it resides in. This insight provides a vital addition to the existing body of knowledge on how galaxies evolve over time.

Obstacles in Understanding Black Hole Effects

Though it is generally understood that active supermassive black holes can instigate major transformations in their host galaxies by heating and dispersing interstellar gas, there are substantial challenges in quantifying these effects. These include the small dimensions of black holes, their considerable distance from Earth, and the interference caused by interstellar dust, which together complicate the process of ascertaining the distribution of chemical elements surrounding an active supermassive black hole.

Specifically, isotopes of hydrogen cyanide (H13CN) are observed solely in the vicinity of the black hole at the center. Additionally, cyanide radicals (CN) are not confined to the central region but are also visible in a ring-like gas structure and along bipolar jets extending from the core. Carbon monoxide isotopes (13CO), conversely, are conspicuously absent from the central area. The research was credited to data from ALMA and the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, with additional contribution from T. Nakajima et al.

Pioneering Observations via ALMA

An interdisciplinary research group led by Toshiki Saito of the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan and Taku Nakajima from Nagoya University used ALMA to scrutinize the central zone of Messier 77, a galaxy situated 51.4 million light-years away in the direction of the Cetus constellation. Messier 77 serves as a relatively proximal example of a galaxy housing an active supermassive black hole.

With the assistance of ALMA’s high-resolution capabilities and a novel machine-learning analytical approach, the research team managed to map out the distribution of 23 different molecules. This study marks the first-ever initiative to impartially delineate the distribution of all identified molecules using unbiased observations. The findings revealed that along the trajectory of the bipolar jets that originate near the black hole, commonly occurring molecules like carbon monoxide (CO) appear to disintegrate. Meanwhile, the concentration of specialized molecules, such as an isomer of HCN and the cyanide radical (CN), tend to increase.

This research serves as unequivocal evidence that supermassive black holes not only influence the macro-structure but also significantly alter the chemical profile of the galaxies they occupy.

Reference: “Molecular Abundance of the Circumnuclear Region Surrounding an Active Galactic Nucleus in NGC 1068 Based on an Imaging Line Survey in the 3 mm Band with ALMA” by Taku Nakajima, Shuro Takano, Tomoka Tosaki, Akio Taniguchi, Nanase Harada, Toshiki Saito, Masatoshi Imanishi, Yuri Nishimura, Takuma Izumi, Yoichi Tamura, Kotaro Kohno and Eric Herbst, published on 14 September 2023 in The Astrophysical Journal.
DOI: 10.3847/1538-4357/ace4c7

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More about Supermassive Black Holes and Galactic Chemistry

• ALMA (Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array)
• The Astrophysical Journal
• National Astronomical Observatory of Japan
• Nagoya University
• NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope
• Galactic Evolution Research
• Supermassive Black Holes and Their Influence on Host Galaxies
• Machine Learning in Astronomy