Jet of plasma being ejected by a massive black hole consuming matter. It is also one of the strongest radio sources in the sky. It extends about ~5 thousand light years from the center of M87 (which is one of the most massive elliptical galaxies known to us. The full extent of the jet can be seen in Hubble pictures.
The challenge in capturing this jet is not to overexpose the galaxy. Hence the jet is actually better captured in very short exposures. Observing conditions are also very important. While the light pollution at my location was unchanged this evening presented relatively good seeing conditions.
More here: https://en.wikipedia...wiki/Messier_87
See this Hubble video as it zooms in on the jet (composite of images taken over 13 years to show how the jet changes): https://www.spacetelescope.org/videos/opo1332a/
Hubble image of the jet:
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| Credit: NASA and The Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA) |
