Multiwavelength View of the M87 Black Hole Captured by the Event Horizon Telescope

G Principe,M Lucchini

doi:10.3847/2515-5172/ac2d33

Abstract

Abstract In 2017, the first image of the center of the M87 galaxy was captured by the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT). It revealed a ring morphology and a size consistent with theoretical expectations for the light pattern around a weakly accreting supermassive black hole of ∼6.5 billion solar masses. In parallel to the EHT measurements, an extensive multi-wavelength (MWL) campaign with ground- and space-based facilities from radio all the way up to the TeV energy range was organized. In this note we will give an overview of the results from this campaign. M87 was found to be in a historically low state. At X-ray energies the emission from the core dominates over HST-1. We present the most complete simultaneous, MWL spectrum of the active nucleus to date.

Highlights

M87 is the most prominent elliptical galaxy within the Virgo Cluster, located just 16.8 ± 0.8 Mpc away (Blakeslee et al 2009; Bird et al 2010)
In 2017, the first direct image of an super-massive black hole (SMBH) “shadow” in the center of M87 galaxy was captured by the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) (Event Horizon Telescope Collaboration et al 2019)
The mass of the SMBH was derived by comparing the size of blurry ring that was measured to that predicted by models (Event Horizon Telescope Collaboration et al 2019)

Summary

Introduction

M87 is the most prominent elliptical galaxy within the Virgo Cluster, located just 16.8 ± 0.8 Mpc away (Blakeslee et al 2009; Bird et al 2010). In parallel to the EHT measurements, an extensive multi-wavelength campaign with ground- and space-based facilities from radio all the way up to the TeV energy range was organized.

Results

Conclusion