On January 14, 2025, the European Space Agency's (ESA) XMM-Newton telescope revealed significant findings regarding supermassive black holes. A research team led by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), including scientists from the Italian National Institute of Astrophysics (INAF), detected quasi-periodic oscillations in X-ray signals emitted from the corona surrounding the supermassive black hole 1ES 1927+654, located in a nearby galaxy.
These oscillations, presented at the 245th meeting of the American Astronomical Society and detailed in an upcoming article in Nature, challenge existing theories regarding black hole accretion. The XMM-Newton observations showed unexpected behavior from 1ES 1927+654, particularly following an eruption in 2018 that temporarily disrupted its X-ray corona. Subsequent observations noted regular fluctuations in X-ray intensity, varying by approximately 10% over time scales of 400 to 1000 seconds.
The oscillations may indicate the presence of a massive object, potentially a white dwarf, orbiting the black hole before being consumed. Theoretical predictions suggested this object would cross the event horizon by January 2024, leading to the cessation of oscillations. However, as of March 2024, XMM-Newton continued to detect these oscillations, with the object traveling at half the speed of light.
This unexpected discovery raises questions about the mechanisms at play, suggesting that alternative processes beyond gravitational waves might be involved. The ESA plans to launch the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) in 2030, which will focus on detecting gravitational waves in the frequency range emitted by 1ES 1927+654, potentially offering deeper insights into the dynamics of this supermassive black hole.