by Ann » Thu Oct 10, 2024 3:59 pm
Christian G. wrote: ↑Thu Oct 10, 2024 11:21 am
Great discussion, great galaxy! About those extra arms, if they originate in the central black hole's activity, why do they run more or less parallel to the galaxy instead of perpendicular to it? Is it that the bh's accretion disk is not aligned at all with the galactic disk? Is a SMBH's orientation independent of its host galaxy orientation and can shoot jets virtually in any direction?
As for the maser vs laser part, I think I get it, it's the "water" maser part I don't get! Where does water come in the picture, what's its function?
Christian, I would guess that the jets are "ejected at less than escape velocity", so that they fall back onto the galaxy again.
As to where water comes into the water masers, we are undoubtedly talking about
H2O in gaseous form.
National Radio Astronomy Observatory wrote:
Water has been detected in the most massive galaxy in the early Universe, according to new observations from the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA). Scientists studying SPT0311-58 found H2O, along with carbon monoxide in the galaxy, which is located nearly 12.88 billion light-years from Earth...
The new research comprises the most detailed study of
molecular gas content of a galaxy in the early Universe to date and the most distant detection of H2O in a regular star-forming galaxy.
It is not surprising that we find quite a lot of H
2O in the universe. I'm sure you know that hydrogen, H, is by far the most abundant element in the universe. Helium is the second most abundant element. But did you know that oxygen, O, is the third most abundant element in the universe?
It's no wonder, then, that water, a molecule consisting of the most abundant and the third most abundant element in the universe, is very common out in space.
The problem is that when we hear the word
water, we typically think of liquid water,
, which is so incredibly important and also relatively abundant here on Earth. In space, however, liquid water hardly exists. Water is found in either solid or gaseous form in the universe.
All right, yes, I know, Chris, liquid water may exist on many planets hidden below thick ice sheets. And yes, there may also be liquid water on the surface on some planets, of course. But that water will almost certainly not end up in water masers.
Ann
[quote="Christian G." post_id=341671 time=1728559273 user_id=147043]
Great discussion, great galaxy! About those extra arms, if they originate in the central black hole's activity, why do they run more or less parallel to the galaxy instead of perpendicular to it? Is it that the bh's accretion disk is not aligned at all with the galactic disk? Is a SMBH's orientation independent of its host galaxy orientation and can shoot jets virtually in any direction?
As for the maser vs laser part, I think I get it, it's the "water" maser part I don't get! Where does water come in the picture, what's its function?
[/quote]
Christian, I would guess that the jets are "ejected at less than escape velocity", so that they fall back onto the galaxy again.
As to where water comes into the water masers, we are undoubtedly talking about [b][size=110][color=#0040FF]H[sub][size=85]2[/size][/sub]O in gaseous form[/color][/size][/b].
[quote][url=https://public.nrao.edu/news/alma-scientists-detect-signs-of-water-in-a-galaxy-far-far-away/]National Radio Astronomy Observatory[/url] wrote:
[b][size=110][color=#0040FF]Water has been detected in the most massive galaxy in the early Universe[/color][/size][/b], according to new observations from the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA). Scientists studying SPT0311-58 found H2O, along with carbon monoxide in the galaxy, which is located nearly 12.88 billion light-years from Earth...
The new research comprises the most detailed study of [b][size=110][color=#0040FF]molecular gas[/color][/size][/b] content of a galaxy in the early Universe to date and the most distant detection of H2O in a regular star-forming galaxy.[/quote]
It is not surprising that we find quite a lot of H[sub][size=85]2[/size][/sub]O in the universe. I'm sure you know that hydrogen, H, is by far the most abundant element in the universe. Helium is the second most abundant element. But did you know that oxygen, O, is the third most abundant element in the universe?
[img3="And third prize goes to.... OXYGEN!!"]https://www.shutterstock.com/image-illustration/bronze-medal-copper-3rd-place-260nw-696275653.jpg[/img3]
It's no wonder, then, that water, a molecule consisting of the most abundant and the third most abundant element in the universe, is very common out in space.
The problem is that when we hear the word [b][color=#0040FF][size=110]water[/size][/color][/b], we typically think of liquid water, 🌊, which is so incredibly important and also relatively abundant here on Earth. In space, however, liquid water hardly exists. Water is found in either solid or gaseous form in the universe.
[size=75]All right, yes, I know, Chris, liquid water may exist on many planets hidden below thick ice sheets. And yes, there may also be liquid water on the surface on some planets, of course. But that water will almost certainly not end up in water masers.[/size]
Ann