University of Texas astronomers have discovered a big black hole at the heart of Leo I. Leo I is one of Milky Way’s dwarf satellite galaxies. This black hole is as big as the black hole in our own galaxy. This new finding will help us to understand how all galaxies evolve. This research paper has been published in The Astrophysical Journal.
Scientists choose Leo I as Leo I does not have much dark matter like most of other dwarf galaxies. Researchers also measured its dark matter from its outer edge to its centre. They did this measure through the gravitational pull on the stars of Leo I. The researchers wanted to find out if dark matter density increases in the centre or not.
The researchers used VIRUS-W Telescope for their research. The researcher finds out galaxies need a black hole at the centre. This research also declines the past studies of Leo I. As the centre of the galaxy was really unexplored in the previous studies. The previous study shows biasness toward low velocities.
The new research is concentrated in the central region. The new findings have shaken up astronomers’ understanding of galaxy evolution. The scientists now can understand how dark matters are distributed within galaxies.
This research has also helped in getting new insight about gravitational wave observatories.
