NGC 1266 is slowly dying. ALMA has revealed a massive fountain of molecular gas being pushed out of the galaxy
Sandeep K S
Dec 31, 2025
1 min read
Galaxy NGC 1266, a "quenching" lenticular galaxy 97.5 million light-years away, is experiencing a massive gas expulsion driven by an active galactic nucleus (AGN). The supermassive black hole at its center is fueling an outflow, depleting its gas reserves at 85 solar masses per year. With two phases of detected gas outflow, NGC 1266's reserves are predicted to last another 450 million years, ultimately ceasing its star formation.
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