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A hidden supermassive black hole may be lurking inside the Antennae galaxies

Phys · · 846 words · By Shreejaya Karantha
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What to know about A hidden supermassive black hole may be lurking inside the Antennae galaxies

Astronomers using ALMA observations have identified a compact source of radiation, S4, in the Antennae galaxies that exhibits rapid variability. This variability suggests the presence of a supermassive black hole, potentially a Compton-thick active galactic nucleus obscured by gas and dust.

Propaganda risk 0%
Claims checked 13
Techniques found 0
Topics 0

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Center100%
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3 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

May 29, 2026 report A hidden supermassive black hole may be lurking inside the Antennae galaxies Shreejaya Karantha Author Gaby Clark Scientific Editor Robert Egan Associate Editor Astronomers may have uncovered a hidden supermassive black hole inside the…

Why it matters

The paper outlining the findings was posted to the arXiv preprint server on May 21.

Common ground

A popular target The Antennae galaxies are a pair of colliding spirals located roughly 70 million light-years from Earth, making them the nearest example of two gas-rich galaxies merging.

Perspective signals

No major persuasion pattern has been attached yet, so the source, headline, and evidence should carry most of the weight for readers.

Astronomers using ALMA observations have identified a compact source of radiation, S4, in the Antennae galaxies that exhibits rapid variability. This variability suggests the presence of a supermassive black hole, potentially a Compton-thick active galactic nucleus obscured by gas and dust.

open_in_new Read the original article: https://phys.org/news/2026-05-hidden-supermassive-black-hole-lurking.html

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Propaganda Score
confidence: 100%
Low risk. This article shows minimal use of propaganda techniques.

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 13 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

check_circle Corroborated 6
schedule Pending 3
info Single Source 2
help Insufficient Evidence 2
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Claim 1: “The observations shed light on two compact sources near the core of NGC 4039, designated S3 and S4.”
SINGLE SOURCE
The identification of compact sources S3 and S4 near the core of NGC 4039 is mentioned in the Phys.org report, but not corroborated by other independent sources in the provided evidence.
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web search NEUTRAL — May 29, 2026 · The observations shed light on two compact sources near the core of NGC 4039, designated S3 and S4. ... However, neither S3 nor S4 are detected in ...
https://phys.org/news/2026-05-hidden-supermassive-black-hole…
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web search NEUTRAL — Three luminous galaxies, including the hard X-ray source NGC 7172, are currently strongly interacting and merging, producing a substantial amount of tidal ...
https://cxc.harvard.edu/target_lists/cycle1/abstracts_cyc1.h…
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web search NEUTRAL — ABSTRACT. IC 2163 and NGC 2207 are interacting galaxies that have been well studied at optical and radio wavelengths and simulated in numerical models to ...
https://scispace.com/pdf/spitzer-space-telescope-irac-and-mi…
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Claim 2: “neither S3 nor S4 are detected in hard X-rays.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
help
Claim 3: “This rate of variability limits the emitting region's size to less than 13 light-days or 0.01 parsecs across.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was found in the provided search results regarding the size limits of the emitting region for source S4.
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Claim 4: “a team of astronomers led by Shinya Komugi of Kogakuin University, Japan, used ALMA to observe Antennae galaxies at 100 GHz.”
CORROBORATED
Three independent web sources (arXiv, Phys.org, and another science news site) confirm the team was led by Shinya Komugi of Kogakuin University and used ALMA at 100 GHz.
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web search NEUTRAL — May 21, 2026 · We used ALMA observations at 100 GHz, executed 52 times over a period of 2.5 months, to search for time variability of millimeter emission. Two ...
https://arxiv.org/html/2605.21879v1
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web search NEUTRAL — May 29, 2026 · In this new study, a team of astronomers led by Shinya Komugi of Kogakuin University, Japan, used ALMA to observe Antennae galaxies at 100 GHz.
https://phys.org/news/2026-05-hidden-supermassive-black-hole…
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web search NEUTRAL — May 30, 2026 · ... by Shinya Komugi of Kogakuin University in Japan used the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) to observe the system at 100 GHz.
https://www.wionews.com/science/what-is-hiding-inside-the-an…
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Claim 5: “The paper outlining the findings was posted to the arXiv preprint server on May 21.”
CORROBORATED
The claim that the paper was posted to arXiv on May 21 is confirmed by both a news report (Phys.org) and the arXiv preprint server itself.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Antenna (pl.: antennas or antennae) most commonly refers to: Antenna (zoology), one of a pair of appendages used for sensing in arthropods Antenna (radio), or aerial, an electronic device that transm…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antenna
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — An antenna (plural: antennae) is one of a pair of appendages used for sensing in arthropods. Antennae are sometimes referred to as feelers. Antennae are connected to the first one or two segments of t…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antenna_(zoology)
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Antennae Galaxies (also known as NGC 4038/NGC 4039 or Caldwell 60/Caldwell 61) are a pair of interacting galaxies in the constellation Corvus. They are currently going through a starburst phase, i…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antennae_Galaxies
+ 3 more evidence sources
schedule
Claim 6: “the limit on the size corresponds to roughly a Schwarzschild radius matching a supermassive black hole with a mass of 10 million suns.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
info
Claim 7: “S3 appears slightly extended and has a luminosity exceeding that of typical supernova remnants or X-ray binaries.”
SINGLE SOURCE
While the provided evidence contains general information about X-ray binaries and supernova remnants in other galaxies (like M82), there is no specific evidence provided that confirms the luminosity properties of source S3 in NGC 4039.
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web search NEUTRAL — This diffuse emission induces high background noise, limiting the source detection efficiency, but the youngest. SNRs emitting with an X-ray luminosity of ∼1038 ...
https://digital.csic.es/bitstream/10261/262613/4/M_82.pdf
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web search NEUTRAL — Most ultraluminous X-ray sources have a typical set of properties not seen in Galactic stellar-mass black holes. They have luminosities of more than 3 × 10 ...
https://www.science.gov/topicpages/m/manson+x-ray+source
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web search NEUTRAL — Jun 25, 2021 ... Many of the 21 sources are expected to be X-ray binaries. They ... has more counts than in NB1, making R1 complementary to R0. R1 al ...
https://arxiv.org/pdf/2106.13482
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Claim 8: “The Antennae galaxies are a pair of colliding spirals located roughly 70 million light-years from Earth”
CORROBORATED
Multiple sources, including ESO and Phys.org, confirm the Antennae galaxies are colliding spirals located approximately 70 million light-years from Earth.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Antennae Galaxies (also known as NGC 4038/NGC 4039 or Caldwell 60/Caldwell 61) are a pair of interacting galaxies in the constellation Corvus. They are currently going through a starburst phase, i…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antennae_Galaxies
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Journey to the Center of the Earth is a 2008 American 3D science fantasy action-adventure film starring Brendan Fraser in the main role, alongside Josh Hutcherson and Anita Briem. Directed by Eric Bre…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Journey_to_the_Center_of_the_E…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Trilobites (; meaning "three-lobed entities") are extinct marine arthropods that form the class Trilobita. One of the earliest groups of arthropods to appear in the fossil record, trilobites were amon…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trilobite
+ 3 more evidence sources
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Claim 9: “They observed the system 52 separate times over about 2.5 months.”
CORROBORATED
The arXiv preprint and an IOPscience result both mention observations executed over a period of approximately 2.5 months; the arXiv source specifically mentions the 52 executions.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Radio 1RPH 1125 kHz Canberra (89.5FM Wagga Wagga, 99.5FM Junee) is a volunteer-staffed AM band radio broadcast station in the Australian Capital Territory serving all of the ACT and surrounding areas …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1RPH
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Antennae Galaxies (also known as NGC 4038/NGC 4039 or Caldwell 60/Caldwell 61) are a pair of interacting galaxies in the constellation Corvus. They are currently going through a starburst phase, i…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antennae_Galaxies
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The silverfish (Lepisma saccharinum) is a species of small, primitive, wingless insect in the order Zygentoma (formerly Thysanura). Its common name derives from the insect's silvery light grey colour,…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silverfish
+ 3 more evidence sources
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Claim 10: “S4... exhibits a variation in its flux on a timescale of just 13 days.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was found in the provided search results regarding the flux variability of source S4 on a 13-day timescale.
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Claim 11: “Astronomers may have uncovered a hidden supermassive black hole inside the famous Antennae galaxies NGC 4038/4039”
CORROBORATED
Multiple independent web sources (Phys.org and others) report that astronomers may have uncovered a hidden supermassive black hole in the Antennae galaxies.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) is an astronomical interferometer of 66 radio telescopes in the Atacama Desert of northern Chile, which observe electromagnetic radiation at mil…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atacama_Large_Millimeter_Array
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Sphingidae are a family of moths commonly called sphinx moths, also colloquially known as hawk moths, with many of their caterpillars known as hornworms. It includes about 1,450 species. It is bes…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sphingidae
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array (VLA) is a centimeter-wavelength radio astronomy observatory in the southwestern United States built in the 1970s. It lies in central New Mexico on the Plains of Sa…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Very_Large_Array
+ 3 more evidence sources
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Claim 12: “The two merging galaxies are called Antennae galaxies because the collision has stripped out long tails of stars, gas, and dust from them, resembling an insect's antennae.”
CORROBORATED
ESA/Hubble and NASA Science both confirm the galaxies are named for the long tails of stars, gas, and dust that resemble insect antennae.
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web search NEUTRAL — The Antennae Galaxies are a pair of interacting galaxies in the constellation Corvus. They are currently going through a starburst phase, in which the collision of clouds of gas and dust, with entangl…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antennae_Galaxies
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web search NEUTRAL — The Antennae Galaxies are named for the two long tails of stars, gas and dust that resemble the antennae of an insect.
https://esahubble.org/news/heic0812/
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web search NEUTRAL — The Antennae galaxies take their name from the long antenna-like "arms" extending far out from the nuclei of the two galaxies, best seen by ground-based telescopes. These "tidal tails" were formed dur…
https://science.nasa.gov/missions/hubble/antennae-galaxies/
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Claim 13: “its brightness temperature at the observing frequency exceeds one million Kelvin.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.