What is the most massive galaxy cluster in the universe?

In summary, the supermassive black holes at the centers of galaxies are known to have the greatest angular momentum in the universe. This is used to drive massive jets of highly relativistic particles. Neutron stars also have high angular momentum, but not as much as black holes. The largest galaxy cluster, such as the Coma cluster, is also a strong candidate for having the greatest angular momentum due to its size and number of galaxies.
  • #1
Loren Booda
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What object in the universe is known as having the greatest angular momentum?
 
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  • #2
Loren Booda said:
What object in the universe is known as having the greatest angular momentum?
Hmmm. I'm not sure that has ever been tested in detail. If you mean singular object, and exclude collections of objects like galaxies and galaxy clusters, then my bet would be the supermassive black holes at the centers of galaxies have the most. They use this angular momentum to drive massive jets of highly relativistic particles (traveling very near the speed of light), jets that can be as long or longer than the galaxy itself. I'm not sure which one has the strongest jet, but then the problem is that the strength of the jet isn't only a function of the black hole's angular momentum, but also the amount of matter falling into it. So quiet supermassive black holes may well have very large angular momenta, but without matter falling into them it's hard to tell.
 
  • #3
I would vote neutron stars. I can see how a black hole can have a rotational axis, but, not a surface. Matter falling into a black hole could acquire significant angular momentum, but, not nearly as much as the surface of a neutron star, imo.
 
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  • #4
Chronos said:
I would vote neutron stars, in the conventional sense. Black holes do not have a surface. Matter falling into a black hole could acquire significant angular momentum, but, not nearly as much as the surface of a neutron star, imo.
Angular momentum is one of the few properties a black hole does have, though: no hair theorems show that a black hole can only be distinguished by mass, charge, and angular momentum.

And while neutron stars have very high rotational speeds, they really don't have more angular momentum than the stars they are produced from.
 
  • #5
How about for an object defined as being gravitationally bound?
 
  • #6
Loren Booda said:
How about for an object defined as being gravitationally bound?
Including galaxies and galaxy clusters? Then the winner would almost certainly just be the largest galaxy cluster.
 
  • #7
Any one in particular?
 
  • #8
Loren Booda said:
Any one in particular?
Well, I'm just not sure what the most massive galaxy cluster that we've so far detected is. The Coma cluster is pretty impressive, though, coming in at over 1000 so far identified galaxies:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coma_Cluster

It was observations of this cluster, actually, that first led to the proposal of dark matter by Fritz Zwicky.
 

Related to What is the most massive galaxy cluster in the universe?

1. What is angular momentum?

Angular momentum is a physical quantity that measures the rotational motion of an object around an axis. It is the product of an object's moment of inertia and its angular velocity.

2. How is angular momentum calculated?

Angular momentum is calculated using the formula L = Iω, where L is angular momentum, I is moment of inertia, and ω is angular velocity. The units for angular momentum are kilogram-meter squared per second (kg⋅m^2/s).

3. What is the conservation of angular momentum?

The conservation of angular momentum states that the total angular momentum of a system remains constant unless acted upon by an external torque. This means that the angular momentum of a system can neither be created nor destroyed, only transferred between objects within the system.

4. How does angular momentum relate to rotational motion?

Angular momentum is directly related to rotational motion, as it measures the amount of rotational motion of an object. The greater the angular momentum, the greater the object's rotational motion.

5. What is the difference between linear and angular momentum?

Linear momentum measures an object's motion in a straight line, while angular momentum measures an object's rotational motion around an axis. Linear momentum is a vector quantity, while angular momentum is a vector quantity with direction perpendicular to the plane of rotation.

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