Messier 87: The Giant Elliptical with a Black Hole at Its Core

Messier 87 (M87) is a giant elliptical galaxy located about 53 million light-years away in the Virgo Cluster.
It spans more than 120,000 light-years, making it comparable in size to the Milky Way but far more massive.
M87 contains over a trillion stars and thousands of globular clusters.
At its center lies a supermassive black hole with a mass of about 6.5 billion Suns.
This black hole was the first ever to be directly imaged by the Event Horizon Telescope in 2019.
A powerful jet of energetic particles extends 5,000 light-years from its core.
The galaxy’s smooth, elliptical shape hides a violent history of mergers and collisions.
M87’s central region glows brightly in radio, X-ray, and optical wavelengths.
It is one of the brightest galaxies in the Virgo Cluster and a key target for astronomers.
Studying M87 helps scientists understand galaxy evolution and the nature of black holes.