JWST Data Reveals Inward Accretion Dominates Black Hole Fueling in Circinus Galaxy

New high-fidelity infrared data from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) concerning the Circinus Galaxy is challenging long-standing astrophysical assumptions about how supermassive black holes are fueled. The observation focused on the immediate environment of the black hole within the spiral galaxy, which is situated approximately 13 million light-years from Earth, or 4.0 Megaparsecs. This detailed imagery directly contradicts the historical consensus that powerful, outward-directed outflows of energized matter were the primary source of infrared light near active galactic cores.

The analysis of the Webb data indicates the opposite process is dominant: the vast majority of hot, dusty material is spiraling inward to feed the central supermassive black hole. This material accumulates at the inner edge of the accretion system, often structured as a torus, which is critical for both black hole growth and the evolution of its host galaxy. Quantitatively, approximately 87% of the infrared emissions from hot dust are now attributed to this inward-funneling material. Conversely, less than 1% of the emission can be linked to matter being expelled in outflows, confirming that consumption substantially outweighs ejection.

This finding resolves a significant conflict that has persisted in astrophysical models since the 1990s, which previously could not account for the observed excess infrared emissions from active galactic cores. To achieve this clarity, the research team utilized an innovative technique involving the Aperture Masking Interferometer (AMI) mode on JWST's Near-Infrared Imager and Slitless Spectrograph (NIRISS) instrument. This method effectively transforms the telescope's full aperture into an interferometric array using a mask with seven small openings, generating interference patterns that resolve previously obscured details.

Co-author Joel Sánchez-Bermúdez of UNAM noted that this advanced imaging mode effectively doubles the resolution over a confined region of the sky, resulting in images twice as sharp as conventional direct imaging. This observation represents the first successful deployment of a space-based infrared interferometer to study an extragalactic target. Lead author Enrique López-Rodríguez from the University of South Carolina stated that this new data set finally reconciles the discrepancy with prior models regarding the infrared signatures of active galactic nuclei.

The Circinus Galaxy, classified as a Type II Seyfert galaxy, has historically presented observation challenges due to its position four degrees below the Galactic plane, causing obscuration by interstellar dust. Previous high-resolution studies, such as those conducted with the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), suggested the Circinus black hole consumed only about 3 percent of approaching gas, with radiation pushing the remainder back in turbulent streams. The JWST data, published in the journal Nature, provides the crucial infrared context to this process. The research team plans to apply this validated technique to a wider array of black holes to determine if the feeding dynamics observed in Circinus are a universal characteristic of these cosmic phenomena.