M87: The largest galaxy in the Virgo cluster of galaxies at a distance of 60 million light years away.
Caption: This image is a composite of visible, radio, and X-ray data of the giant elliptical galaxy, M87. Bright jets moving at close to the speed of light are seen at all wavelengths coming from the massive black hole at the center of the galaxy. M87 is a powerful source of X-rays, as observed by Chandra, as it resides near the center of a hot, X-ray emitting cloud that extends over much of the Virgo cluster. M87 has also been identified with the strong radio source, Virgo A. The extended radio emission consists of plumes of fast-moving gas from the jets rising into the X-ray emitting cluster medium.
Scale: Image is
11 arcmin across.
Chandra X-ray Observatory ACIS
Image
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