Closest quasar observations by Hubble

Amateur astronomers can search for a unique starlike object, known as 3C 273, which holds the record as the farthest target observable from Earth through a common-sized backyard telescope. Because 3C 273 radiates the light equivalent of trillions of suns, it can be seen over two billion light-years away. Today, it is known as the blinding bright core of an active galaxy, powered by a supermassive black hole consuming material.

Photo credit: NASA, ESA, Bin Ren (Université Côte d’Azur/CNRS)

Closest quasar observation by Hubble: Quasar 3C 273 reveals that it contains a monster black hole

In 1963, 3C 273 was a complete mystery. Astronomer Maarten Schmidt examined the object after its loud radio emissions caught his attention. Using the most powerful telescope of the time, he observed it as a star. However, its light was peculiar, with a redshift indicating a distance of 2.5 billion light-years. This distance was too far for a lone star, marking the discovery of a new class of objects called quasars, or quasi-stellar objects. The extreme brightness and energy emitted by quasars were staggering, especially considering their location among distant galaxies.

Legendary active galaxy contains a monster black hole

Photo credit: NASA, ESA, Bin Ren (Université Côte d’Azur/CNRS)

In 1929, astrophysicist Sir James Jeans hypothesized that the bright centers of galaxies could be sources of material flowing into the universe from another dimension, a concept later referred to as a "white hole." However, the opposite is true. Quasars, along with active galactic nuclei containing massive black holes that consume matter, are now fundamental to astrophysics and cosmology. These brilliant beacons play a critical role in the formation and evolution of stars and galaxies.

The new Hubble image opens a new chapter in understanding quasars. Hubble's sharp vision has captured unusual features within 16,000 light-years of the black hole, including filaments, lobes, and an L-shaped structure. Some of these objects may be small satellite galaxies falling into the black hole, which is nearly 900 million times the mass of the Sun. Quasars like 3C 273 are found scattered across the sky, and 3C 273 itself was the first quasar ever discovered.

Quasar 3C 273 Compass Image

Photo credit: NASA, ESA, Bin Ren (Université Côte d’Azur/CNRS)

Astronomers have utilized NASA's Hubble Space Telescope to observe the closest-ever view of the energetic black hole powering a quasar. A quasar is the luminous center of a galaxy, with the brightness coming from the black hole consuming surrounding material.

Hubble’s new images of the quasar’s environment reveal a variety of "weird things," according to Bin Ren of the Côte d'Azur Observatory and Université Côte d'Azur in Nice, France. “We've observed several blobs of varying sizes, along with a mysterious L-shaped filamentary structure, all within 16,000 light-years of the black hole."

Some of these features could be small satellite galaxies orbiting the black hole, potentially providing material to fuel the central supermassive black hole and power the quasar's brilliance. “Hubble’s observations are opening new doors in our understanding of quasars," Ren added. "My colleagues are excited because this level of detail is unprecedented."

Quasars appear starlike in the sky (hence the name quasi-stellar object). The first quasar, 3C 273, was identified in 1963 by astronomer Maarten Schmidt. Located 2.5 billion light-years away, its energy output was more powerful than previously imagined, over 10 times brighter than the brightest giant elliptical galaxies. This led astronomers to explore what was driving this massive energy production, with the likely cause being material accreting onto a black hole.

Hubble’s sharp views in 1994 revealed that quasars are surrounded by complex environments. These images suggested that galactic collisions and mergers are common, with debris falling toward supermassive black holes and reigniting the quasars.

Viewing the quasar 3C 273 through Hubble’s instruments is like trying to see an ant crawling on the rim of a car headlight. The quasar emits thousands of times more energy than all the stars in a galaxy combined. At 2.5 billion light-years away, it is one of the closest quasars to Earth. (If it were much closer, just tens of light-years away, it would appear as bright as the Sun in the sky.) Hubble’s STIS instrument functions like a coronagraph, blocking the light from the central quasar so that astronomers can study the area around it in greater detail. The STIS tool allowed scientists to observe the quasar from eight times closer than before.

Scientists have gained rare insights into the 300,000-light-year-long extragalactic jet of material traveling near the speed of light. By comparing data from Hubble’s STIS coronagraph with archival images from 22 years ago, the team led by Ren found that the jet moves faster as it gets farther from the black hole.

“Hubble’s high-resolution observations have bridged the gap between small-scale radio interferometry and large-scale optical imaging, helping to improve our understanding of quasar host morphology,” Ren said. “In the future, further infrared observations of 3C 273 with the James Webb Space Telescope may provide even more insights.”

With at least 1 million quasars scattered across the sky, these objects serve as valuable background “spotlights” for other astronomical studies. Quasars were most abundant about 3 billion years after the Big Bang when galaxy collisions were more common.

The Hubble Space Telescope, operational for over three decades, continues to make groundbreaking discoveries that shape the fundamental understanding of the universe. Hubble is a joint project between NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA). The mission is managed by NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, with Lockheed Martin Space supporting mission operations at Goddard. The Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) in Baltimore, operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, oversees Hubble science operations for NASA.