Combined observations seem to
indicate an active jet of
high-velocity particles deflected
from the edge of another galaxy.
Could electrical interaction be the
cause.NASA
recently announced the discovery of two galaxies orbiting a common center
but with a twist: the larger of the two is firing a jet of energetic material
out of a black hole directly at the edge of its smaller neighbor.
“We've seen many jets produced by black holes, but this is the first time we've
seen one punch into another galaxy like we're seeing here." said Dan Evans, a
scientist at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics.
According to conventional astronomical theories, jets from massive black holes
(said to reside in the center of most galaxies) emit copious amounts of
radiation, especially X-rays and gamma rays. These extremely energetic
electromagnetic waves travel at the speed of light, transporting energy far from
the black holes and initiating effects on large-scale environments. The 3C321
phenomenon represents the first time a “jet” has been observed to “impact”
another galaxy.
Learning more about jets is a key goal for astrophysical research. "We see jets
all over the Universe, but we're still struggling to understand some of their
basic properties," said co-investigator Martin Hardcastle of the University of
Hertfordshire, United Kingdom. "This system of 3C321 gives us a chance to learn
how they're affected when they slam into something - like a galaxy - and what
they do after that."
In conventional galactic models, there is no “edge” to a disc of stars revolving
around their common center. The stars are loosely bound together by the force of
gravity and are more like a swarm of bees than like a solid object. In that
sense, the stellar swarm would not deflect a stream of hot gas and dust; it
would be absorbed and diffused throughout the structure. So it must be asked,
off what are the high-energy particles bouncing?
In the Electric Universe model of stars and galaxies the cosmos is a
manifestation of plasma in its multi-various forms. There is no neutral matter
in the universe – no conglomerations of smoky gas, no wisps of unionized dust –
everything is electrically active and behaves as a plasma should behave.
Pioneering researcher
Hannes Alfvén found that stars (and galaxies) are part of electrical
circuits and are influenced by the magnetic fields that are generated by them.
In the presence of electric currents, gravity gives way to electromagnetic
forces that are incomparably more powerful, accelerating matter away from a star
or a collection of stars. It is through that mechanism that “jets” of matter are
fired from the poles of stars or from the active galaxies.
Plasma physicists have
experimentally confirmed that a
toroidal magnetic field confines an electric discharge.
The magnetic field keeps the charged particles from
dispersing. Similarly,
magnetism and electric circuits within galaxies hold the
stars together, magnetically, so its neighbor may
electromagnetically repel the jet from the larger galaxy in
3C321.
By Stephen Smith
