Bootes Field

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Chandra X-ray
Observatory Center
Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
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http://chandra.harvard.edu
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Bootes Field: A 9.3-square-degree survey taken in the constellation of Bootes.
(Credit: X-ray: NASA/CXC/CfA/R.Hickox et al.; Moon: NASA/JPL)

Caption: This panorama is the largest contiguous field ever obtained by the Chandra X-ray Observatory. These data, when combined with infrared and optical information, reveal more than a thousand supermassive black holes in the centers of galaxies, some up to several billion times more massive than the sun. The results give a snapshot into a crucial period of growth for these monster black holes, and provide insight into the environments in which they occur.

Scale: Image is 148 by 198 arcmin across.

Chandra X-ray Observatory ACIS Image

CXC operated for NASA by the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory
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