3-5b Article, Published: 28 July 2021

Light bending and X-ray echoes from behind a supermassive black hole
D. R. Wilkins, L. C. Gallo, E. Costantini, W. N. Brandt & R. D. Blandford
Nature volume 595, pages 657–660 (2021) Cite this article

Metricsdetails

Abstract
The innermost regions of accretion disks around black holes are strongly irradiated by X-rays that are emitted from a highly variable, compact corona, in the immediate vicinity of the black hole1,2,3. The X-rays that are seen reflected from the disk4, and the time delays, as variations in the X-ray emission echo or ‘reverberate’ off the disk5,6, provide a view of the environment just outside the event horizon. I Zwicky 1 (I Zw 1) is a nearby narrow-line Seyfert 1 galaxy7,8. Previous studies of the reverberation of X-rays from its accretion disk revealed that the corona is composed of two components: an extended, slowly varying component extending over the surface of the inner accretion disk, and a collimated core, with luminosity fluctuations propagating upwards from its base, which dominates the more rapid variability9,10. Here we report observations of X-ray flares emitted from around the supermassive black hole in I Zw 1. X-ray reflection from the accretion disk is detected through a relativistically broadened iron K line and Compton hump in the X-ray emission spectrum. Analysis of the X-ray flares reveals short flashes of photons consistent with the re-emergence of emission from behind the black hole. The energy shifts of these photons identify their origins from different parts of the disk11,12. These are photons that reverberate off the far side of the disk, and are bent around the black hole and magnified by the strong gravitational field. Observing photons bent around the black hole confirms a key prediction of general relativity.

With all this we see that behind the nothingness there must be something. It is clear that what we assume to be nothing is not an empty thing but a part in this world with substance. Perhaps a more important part in life than has been assumed so far.

However, the fact that man has only a limited view, and that has to do with people being so numb and kept away from true life, is certainly a factor in the whole thing. When you ask any person to describe life, you will get a dark answer and in the so-called spiritual circles you hear the most fantastic stories but all evading the core because they are not aware of it.

“Light in the darkness”

It is all about working with energy and to what extent are we going to develop that.

Energy, frequencies and the many routes can make us ignite a counter-reaction. However, do we want to see the real world?

To Chapter 30