Hubble Picture of the Week showcases galaxy with unusual glowing gas

NGC 4388 is a spiral galaxy located about 60 million light-years away in the constellation Virgo (The Maiden). The galaxy is no stranger to Hubble. The previous image of the galaxy was released in 2016. But this new image includes more data. It highlights a plume of glowing gas jetting out from the galaxy’s disc.

Scientists provided tenable explanations for the outflow of gas. NGC 4388 belongs to the Virgo galaxy cluster. Galaxies in this cluster are separated by a space that contains hot wisps of gas called the intracluster medium. As NGC 4388 moves through the intracluster medium, it is subject to pressure from the gas that makes up the medium. This causes the pulling away of some of its own gas — what we see as the gas outflow from NGC 4388’s disc to the lower right corner of the image.

As for the glow, it still lies in much uncertainty. However, scientists suggest that it could be caused by the supermassive black hole in the galaxy’s center. The supermassive black hole spins the gas around it. This turns the gas into a superheated disc. The disc then ionizes the surrounding gas, causing it to glow. The gas further away probably glows due to the action of shock waves.

This Hubble image was possible thanks to data from several observing programs. Such programs aim to provide more insight into understanding galaxies with active black holes at their centers.