MQ1 Microquasar: Super-Powered Small Black Hole Is Only 60 Miles Wide
Astronomers studying nearby galaxy M83 have found a new super-powered small black hole, named MQ1. M83, the iconic Southern-sky galaxy, is being mapped with the Hubble Space and Magellan telescopes (detecting visible light), the Chandra X-ray Observatory (detecting light in X-ray frequencies), the Australia Telescope Compact Array and the Very Large Array (detecting radio waves). Astronomers have found a few compact objects that are as powerful as MQ1, but have not been able to work out the size of the black hole contained within them until now. The team observed the MQ1 system with multiple telescopes and discovered that it is a standard-sized small black hole, rather than a slightly bigger version that was hypothesized to account for all its power. read more