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(CNN) - About 3.5 million years ago, a gigantic eruption of energy emerged from the center of our galaxy, the Milky Way. The radiation it emitted exploded in two energized cones that were so powerful that the impact was felt 200,000 light years away.
The flare, called the Seyfert flare, began small, near the center of the galaxy that is dominated by a supermassive black hole. When the cones formed and made their way through the galaxy, they expanded.
The flare was felt in the Magellan Current 200,000 light years away, a gas trail from nearby dwarf galaxies such as the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds.
What could trigger such a big explosion? The researchers believe it was a nuclear activity connected to the black hole. The black hole is called Sagittarius A, or Sgr A *. Compared to our sun, the black hole is 4.2 million times more massive.
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The researchers were able to use data from the Hubble Space Telescope to understand and calculate the explosion. Their findings will be published in The Astrophysical Journal.
"The flare must have been a bit like the light of a lighthouse," said Joss Bland-Hawthorn, author of the study and professor at the University of Sydney and the ARC Center for Astrophysics All Sky in 3 Dimensions, called ASTRO 3D. "Imagine the darkness, and then someone turns on the headlight of a lighthouse for a short period of time."
A representation of the massive explosions of ionizing radiation that explode from the center of the Milky Way and impact the Magellan Current.
The researchers determined that the explosion occurred 3.5 million years ago, approximately when ancient human ancestors such as Australopithecus were in Africa. The asteroid collision that led to the extinction of the dinosaurs occurred 63 million years earlier.
The explosion lasted about 300,000 years.
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"This is a dramatic event that happened a few million years ago in the history of the Milky Way," said Lisa Kewley, co-author of the study and director of ASTRO 3D. “A massive explosion of energy and radiation left directly from the galactic center and surrounding material. This shows that the center of the Milky Way is a much more dynamic place than we had previously thought. It is fortunate that we are not residing there. ”
This investigation follows the previous work of Bland-Hawthorn establishing that the explosive event was related to the activity of the black hole, rather than a nuclear outbreak. But the researchers acknowledged that future research will be needed to help determine more about the evolution of black holes and how that behavior can influence galaxies.
"These results dramatically change our understanding of the Milky Way," said Magda Guglielmo, co-author of the study at the University of Sydney. “We always think of our galaxy as an inactive galaxy, with a not-so-bright center. Instead, these new results open the possibility of a complete reinterpretation of its evolution and nature. The flare that occurred three million years ago was so powerful that it had consequences in the environment of our galaxy. We are witnessing the awakening of sleeping beauty. ”
astronomy Milky Way
