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Dancing Galaxies Make a Monster at the Cosmic Dawn

Animation Movie Black Holes Distant Universe

The Subaru Telescope has discovered a pair of relatively faint quasars 12.8 billion light-years away (900 million years old, the “dawn of the universe”).
Quasars are objects that shine brightly due to the energy released when a large amount of gas falls into a supermassive black hole.
Observations of this object with the ALMA telescope revealed that the two mother galaxies hosting each quasar have merged.
Professor Takuma Izumi of the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan predicts that this object will fully merge in a few hundred million years and evolve into an intensely bright quasar as more gas flows into the central black hole.
Supermassive Black Hole Feeding and Feedback are Finally Resolved at the Center of an Active Galaxy

Animation Movie Black Holes

An international research team led by Associate Professor Takuma Izumi (Associate Professor at that time) of the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ) has observed the Circinus Galaxy at extremely high resolution using the ALMA telescope. As a result, the team clearly captured the accretionary flow toward the supermassive black hole and revealed that the accretionary flow is caused by a physical mechanism called “gravitational instability". Furthermore, it was found that most of the accretion flow is not used for the growth of the black hole, but is instead ejected as atomic or molecular gas from the vicinity of the black hole, and then returns to the gas disk to become accretion flow to the black hole again, as if a fountain-like gas cycle is occurring. This is an important achievement for understanding the growth mechanism of supermassive black holes. "more information"
Credit: ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO), T. Izumi et al.
Star-Planet formation with ALMA image

Animation Movie

The ALMA telescopes are a group of radio telescopes installed on the Atacama Plateau (5,000 meters above sea level) in Chile, South America, and operated under international cooperation. By observing radio waves from space with overwhelmingly high sensitivity and resolution, the telescope aims to clearly capture the birthplace of stars and planets and elucidate their origins and processes.
Resurrected Supernova Provides Missing-Link in Stellar Evolution

Animation Movie Artist's Rendering

An international research team has discovered the first example of a supernova, known as SN 2018ivc, showing an unprecedented rebrightening at millimeter wavelengths about one year after the explosion.
With the help of the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array -- or ALMA -- the analysis revealed that the dying massive star ejected a large amount of its envelope due to a strong binary interaction with a companion star that took place about 1500 years before the explosion.
In a paper published in The Astrophysical Journal Letters, the team posits that this rebrightening event in SN 2018ivc provides a missing link between supernovae -- or SN -- that occur in binary star systems and those that involve solitary massive stars. "more information"
Credit: ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO), Animation: S.Iwashita (NAOJ)
10th Anniversary of ALMA Science Operation - Tracing Back the History of the Universe

Interview

When and how the first galaxies formed? How did they glow up? By capturing the faint radio waves that have traveled over billions of years, astronomers are able to unravel the history of the Universe.

The ALMA telescope, which started its initial scientific observations in 2011, celebrates its 10th anniversary in 2021.
ALMA has enabled us to see various aspects of the Universe that were previously invisible, and astronomy has made great progress. In this video interview series, we look back on the past 10 years and introduce the great impact that ALMA has had on astronomy.

The topic of the third and finale episode is the research on ancient galaxies. Prof. Masami Ouchi of the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan talks about the research.
Exploring the Structure of Celestial Object: Mechanism of the Radio Interferometer

ALMA History

A huge radio telescope made up of many parabolic antennas is called a "radio interferometer". ALMA is also a radio interferometer with 66 antennas. How does having so many antennas allow us to take detailed images of celestial objects? The key lies in the "time difference" of the radio waves reaching two antennas. This video explains how the image is generated with the radio interferometer.
10th Anniversary of ALMA Science Operation - Progress in Planet Formation Research

Interview

"How do planets form? ALMA is about to answer this question.

The ALMA telescope, which started its initial scientific observations in 2011, celebrates its 10th anniversary in 2021.
ALMA has enabled us to see various aspects of the Universe that were previously invisible, and astronomy has made great progress. In this video interview, we look back on the past 10 years and introduce the great impact that ALMA has had on astronomy.

In the first installment, we introduce the study of planet formation with ALMA.
Prof. Ryohei Kawabe of the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan talks about the research.
Computer graphics movie of the star formation history in the galaxy MACS1149-JD1

Artist's Rendering

The self-gravity of matter creates filamentary structures and the density at the intersections of the filaments increases. Around 200 million years after the Big Bang, active star formation ignites in the high density regions, which leads to the formation of galaxies. The gas in the galaxy is blown off by active stellar wind and supernovae, then the gas returns to the galaxy and causes another burst of star formation.

For details: See the press release "ALMA Finds Oxygen 13.28 Billion Light-Years Away - Most Distant Oxygen Indicates Mature Nature of a Young Galaxy".

Credit: ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO)
Development of the ACA Correlator - Mission to Process Huge Amounts of Data in Real Time

ALMA History

This short video introduces development and manufacturing scene of the ACA Correlator.
Caption: English
Voice: Japanese

Credit: ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO)
Professor Takaaki Kajita Visits ALMA

On-site Movies

Professor Takaaki Kajita, Director of the Institute for Cosmic Ray Research (ICRR) at the University of Tokyo, is one of the two winners of the 2015 Nobel Prize in Physics. He is also a member of the Advisory Committee for Research and Management of NAOJ. On June 25, Prof. Kajita took the opportunity to visit the ALMA Array Operations Site (AOS) during his trip to Chile.
ALMA Trilateral Agreement Signing Ceremony

ALMA History

On December 15, 2015, the National Institutes of Natural Sciences of Japan (NINS), the European Southern Observatory (ESO), and the National Science Foundation (NSF) signed an agreement concerning the operations of ALMA. The new agreement signed in Tokyo provides the framework for the long-lasting operations of ALMA over the next 20 years.

See ALMA News: ALMA Trilateral Agreement Signing Ceremony

Credit: ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO)
Artist’s impression video of a baby star TMC-1A

Artist's Rendering

Researchers using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) have made the first direct observations delineating the gas disk around a baby star from the infalling gas envelope. This finding fills an important missing piece in our understanding of the early phases of stellar evolution.
This video is an artist’s impression of the baby star TMC-1A. The star is located in the center and surrounded by a rotating gas disk. Gas is infalling to the disk from the envelope further out.

Credit: NAOJ

Press release is available at ALMA Spots Baby Star's Growing Blanket
MADE IN NAOJ! ALMA Receiver Development part. 2

ALMA History

Recorded in 2013-2014 (0:13:22)

This short video introduces development and manufacturing scene of the sensitive ALMA receivers in the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan.
Caption: English
Voice: Japanese

Credit: ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO)
ALMA Precisely Measures Black Hole Mass

Artist's Rendering

A research group led by Kyoko Onishi at the SOKENDAI (The Graduate University for Advanced Studies) observed the barred spiral galaxy NGC 1097 with ALMA and found that the central supermassive black hole (SMBH) has a mass 140 million times the mass of the Sun.
This is video of new ALMA result on weighing supermassive black hole in the barred spiral galaxy NGC 1097.

Credit: J. Hellerman, B. Kent (NRAO/AUI/NSF); ALMA (NRAO/ESO/NAOJ); K. Onishi (SOKENDAI); NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope
Produced by U. S. National Radio Astronomy Observatory

Press release is available at ALMA Precisely Measures Black Hole Mass
MADE IN NAOJ! ALMA Receiver Development part. 1

ALMA History

Recorded in 2014 (0:11:38)

This short video introduces development and manufacturing scene of the sensitive ALMA receivers in the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan.
Caption: English
Voice: Japanese

Credit: ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO)
Aerial View of ALMA Facilities and Final Antenna Arrives on Chajnantor

ALMA History On-site Movies

Filmed in June 2014.
Aerial view of the ALMA Facilities in northern Chile and the transportation of the final ALMA antennas to the Chajnantor Plateau.

Credit: Ariel Marinkovic / X-Cam
Making the Ultimate Radio Telescope—The ALMA Antenna (Telescope Mount)

ALMA History

Recorded in 2011 (0:16:46)

[Contents]
・Machining of the antenna mount structures
・Design and development of the direct drive system
・Design and development of the precise positioning system (Metrology system)
Caption: English
Voice: Japanese

Credit: ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO)
ALMA Inauguration Ceremony

ALMA History On-site Movies

Recorded in 2013 (0:15:20)

[Contents]
March 13, 2013 ALMA Inauguration Ceremony
Caption: English
Voice: English and Japanese

Credit: ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO)
ALMA Video -9 "Construction of ALMA 2011"

ALMA History On-site Movies

Recorded in 2011 (0:18:54)

[Contents]
・July 21, 2011 Plant Tour before the Final Shipment of ACA antennas
・August 25, 2011 Land Transport in Japan
・September 8, 2011 Shipment
・October 18, 2011 Land Transport in Chile
・2011 Current Status
Caption: English
Voice: Japanese and Spanish

Credit: ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO)
Making the Ultimate Radio Telescope -The ALMA Antenna (Main Reflector)- Part 2

ALMA History

Recorded in 2011 (0:18:00)

[Contents]
・12m Antenna Back Panel
・12m/7m Antenna Back-up Structure
・12m/7m Antenna Center Hub
・7m Antenna Temperature control
Caption: English
Voice: Japanese

Credit: ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO)