Artist's Impression of the Surroundings of the Supermassive Black Hole in NGC 3783

This artist’s impression shows the surroundings of the supermassive black hole at the heart of the active galaxy NGC 3783 in the southern constellation of Centaurus (The Centaur). New observations using the Very Large Telescope Interferometer at ESO’s Paranal Observatory in Chile have revealed not only the torus of hot dust around the black hole but also a wind of cool material in the polar regions.

Illustration credit: ESO/M. Kornmesser

Note: For more information, see Dusty Surprise Around Giant Black Hole.