One of the tasks of theJWST was to study the formation and evolution of the universe. The shape of today's galaxies is similar to the shape of the M60 elliptical. The universe didn't look like this before.
These shapes aren't seen when we look at the most distant and oldest galaxies. Modern and early galaxies are not the same.
There is a new study looking at organic molecule near the stars. Researchers say they can teach us a lot about the evolution of the universe.
PAHs are the molecule in this study. Precousy compounds are important building blocks. The early formation of life might have been aided by those compounds. They are attractive to scientists because of their relationship to life. PAHs get excited and are very bright when they are illuminated with light from the stars. Astronomers get a lot of information from observing them.
The study was published in the journal Astronomy and Astrophysics. The lead author is a physicist.
The data from theMIRI is used in this study. It is possible to see in the 5 to 28-micron range of the spectrum. Medium-resolution Spectroscopy can be performed by it.
Every year, there are many papers published in the field of galaxy evolution. A key component of the effort is the structural evolution of the universe. The structural evolution is dependent on a lot of other things. We learn about all of them when we learn about one of them.
It will undergo multiple processes that change its structure. The formation of bulges and disks are included. Gas inflow drives the formation of spirals. Mergers are the main event that drives evolution.
PAHs can be used to understand galaxy evolution since they are widespread in space. They are useful to scientists because they can compare how different PAHs behave in different places and understand more about the environments they are in. The study looked at PAHs in different Galaxies.
Astronomers use PAHs because they get excited by stars and become light in the sky. They are excellent markers for the formation of stars. There is activity in the AGN at the center of the galaxies where there isn't a star. The researchers compared the PAH emissions near the AGN with those near the stars.
The theory predicts how PAHs should act. PAHs couldn't survive in the centers of the galaxies with active black holes. They should be destroyed in a place where they can't be damaged.
Thanks to the power of the JWST, we now know that is not the case. The researchers believe that the PAHs can survive near the black holes because of the large amount of gas near the nucleus.
They don't survive without a fight. Black holes are huge objects that warp space time. Powerful radiation can be seen in the x-ray andgamma-ray wavebands. Even though PAHs can survive, they don't all survive. The study showed that smaller molecule and charged molecule were destroyed, but larger and more neutral molecule survived. PAHs are not allowed to be used as tracers in the future.
This is some of the first research to be done. Some of the observations in this study came from the telescope. There will be a lot more of this type of research in the future. That's important for this team. Detailed studies such as this one that take advantage of the unprecedented capabilities of JWST and are carried out not only with larger samples of galaxies but covering wider, hydrogen column density, and Eddington ratio ranges are needed to improve.
The lead author is enthusiastic about what they have accomplished so far, even though she is looking forward to research that builds on these results. PAHs are becoming even more accurate thanks to the observing power of the JWST.
The research is of great interest to the wider astronomy community because it focuses on the formation of planets and stars in the most distant and faint galaxies. We can observe PAH molecule in the nuclear region of a galaxy and the next step is to analyse a larger sample of active galaxies with different properties. We will be able to better understand how PAH molecule survive in the nuclear region. PAHs can be used to characterise the amount of star formation in galaxies and how they evolve.
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