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3C321 is a system of two galaxies rotating around each other.
Both of them have a supermassive black hole at their centers, with the larger primary galaxy having a jet emanating from its vicinity.

It is a quasar - a supermassive black hole surrounded by an accretion disk of superhot gas and dust.
As the gas spirals into the black hole, it heats up tremendously due to friction and emits electromagnetic radiations.
Hence, quasars are among the brightest objects in the Universe, outshining even entire galaxies.
These behemoths are visible even from billions of light years away.
In fact, quasars are some of the farthest objects known in the Universe.

3C321’s quasar ignited about a million years ago, blasting its companion with radiation which has been swinging by it at an extremely close distance of 20,000 ly.
For instance, the distance between the Earth and the Milky Way center is about 27,200 ly. Galactic violence of this scale has never been seen before.

The jet does not terminate after hitting the smaller galaxy, but deflects away after the hit extending beyond up to 1.7 Mly. With the combined efforts of ground based observatories and space telescopes, the system has been observed in x-ray (Chandra), optical (Hubble), ultraviolet (Hubble) and radio (VLA / Merlin).

These hyper energetic jets have substantial impact on the affected galaxy, disturbing the interstellar medium in its path and triggering star formation as a series of star bursts. It could be detrimental to the planets, radically altering their atmospheres and potentially changing their habitability.
From such an affected location, where the jet is directed very near towards the observer, the intensity of the radiation would appear boosted due to relativistic beaming, appearing much brighter, thus seeming like a blazar.

Presence of active hotspots at the ends of the jet reveals its age to be less than a million years. Such an alignment is incredibly rare when considering the system's lifespan, which in the order of billions of years.

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Images and animation clips: NASA/ESA, ESO, Chandra X-Ray Observatory
Music: Ultra by Savfk
   • Ultra by Savfk [CC-BY royalty free music -...  
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