Type

Supermassive

Location

in the constellation Fornax

Distance

56 million light-years (17.2 megaparsecs)

Mass

2 million times the mass of the Sun

Size

Eight times the diameter of the Sun

Discovery Methods

• Detection of an accretion disk
• Measuring the motions of gas

An artist's concept shows an accretion disk around a supermassive black hole, with a jet of particles shooting away from the pole. [NASA/JPL]

This document was last modified: May 13, 2013.