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M87 Jet – Knot Flaring (Annotated)

This annotated movie shows a zoom into the giant elliptical galaxy M87. Inside that galaxy is one of the most massive black holes discovered to date. Hubble astronomers are focusing their attention on a narrow jet of gas and radiation coming from that black hole. That jet seems to have a mysterious glowing knot in it – one that is brightening and fading over a period of several years.
  • Release Date
    April 14, 2009
  • Science Release
    Hubble Witnesses Spectacular Flaring in Gas Jet from M87’s Black Hole
    Read the release
  • Credit
    NASA, ESA, Z. Levay, G. Bacon, and M. Estacion (STScI); Image: NASA, ESA, J. Madrid (McMaster University)

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Last Updated
Aug 17, 2025
Contact
Media

Claire Andreoli
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center
Greenbelt, Maryland
claire.andreoli@nasa.gov

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