NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory captures a lonely galaxy, classified as 3C 297, that likely devoured its companions. This galaxy is located 9.2 billion light-years from Earth and consists of a quasar as well as a supermassive black hole, which pulls in gas from the galaxy’s center, resulting in powerful jets of matter.
Some astronomers believe 3C 297 could be a galaxy cluster, or a gigantic structure with hundreds or possibly even thousands of individual galaxies. Chandra’s X-ray data uncovered large quantities of gas heated to millions of degrees and a jet from the quasar that has smashed into the gas around it, creating a “hotspot” of X-rays. Even though the nineteen galaxies surrounding 3C 297 appear to be close to each other, they are actually at varying distances.
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The authors cannot rule out the presence of dwarf galaxies around 3C 297, but their presence would still not explain the lack of larger galaxies like the Milky Way. Nearby examples are M87 in the Virgo Cluster, which has had large galactic companions for billions of years. However, 3C 297 will spend billions of years essentially alone,” said NASA.
