These joint efforts support the pathfinder for ngVLA technologies, focusing on very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) capabilities that enable ultra-sharp imaging of the Universe.
The NSF Very Large Array Helps Reveal Record-Breaking Stream of Super-Heated Gas from Nearby Galaxy
Recent News
Astronomers Detect Magnetic Fingerprint of a Cosmic Explosion for the First Time
Using the U.S. National Science Foundation Very Large Array (NSF VLA) radio telescope, which is operated by the U. S. National Science Foundation National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NSF NRAO), the team detected polarized light from a gamma-ray burst (GRB) afterglow for the first time at radio wavelengths.
NSF VLA Sky Survey Sets New Standard for High-Resolution, Wide-Area Radio Astronomy
The U.S. National Science Foundation National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NSF NRAO) has completed observations for the Very Large Array Sky Survey (VLASS), the most detailed radio survey of the sky ever conducted.
The NSF Very Large Array Helps Reveal Record-Breaking Stream of Super-Heated Gas from Nearby Galaxy
Astronomers using the U.S. National Science Foundation Very Large Array (NSF VLA), together with the NASA James Webb Space Telescope and other observatories, have identified an enormous, galaxy-scale stream of super-heated gas erupting from the nearby galaxy VV 340a. New radio images from the NSF VLA trace a pair of powerful plasma jets launched by the galaxy’s central supermassive black hole, which appear to be driving hot coronal gas out of the galaxy and shutting down future star formation.
VV 340a lies relatively close in cosmic terms, giving astronomers an unprecedented, multiwavelength look at how radio jets from a feeding black hole can carve through a galaxy’s disk, stir up its gas, and limit its ability to grow new stars. In VV 340a, the jets extend on kiloparsec scales and follow a helical path, clear evidence that they slowly change direction over time in a process known as jet precession. This is the first time astronomers have seen a precessing, kiloparsec-scale radio jet in a disk galaxy driving such a massive, coherent outflow of coronal gas.
Operated by the U.S. National Science Foundation National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NSF NRAO) the NSF VLA is one of the world’s most versatile and powerful radio observatories and was essential for revealing the structure and impact of VV 340a’s jets. This result was presented on Thursday, January 8, 2026 at the 247th American Astronomical Society Conference. Read the full press release.
About NRAO
The National Radio Astronomy Observatory is a facility of the U.S. National Science Foundation, operated under cooperative agreement by Associated Universities, Inc.
Media Contact:
Corrina C. Jaramillo Feldman
Sr. Public Information Officer
VLA, VLBA, ngVLA
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This news article was originally published on the NRAO website on January 8, 2026.
Recent News
U.S. National Science Foundation, NSF National Radio Astronomy Observatory and U.S. Naval Observatory Partner on Pathfinder for Next Generation Very Large Array
These joint efforts support the pathfinder for ngVLA technologies, focusing on very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) capabilities that enable ultra-sharp imaging of the Universe.
Astronomers Detect Magnetic Fingerprint of a Cosmic Explosion for the First Time
Using the U.S. National Science Foundation Very Large Array (NSF VLA) radio telescope, which is operated by the U. S. National Science Foundation National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NSF NRAO), the team detected polarized light from a gamma-ray burst (GRB) afterglow for the first time at radio wavelengths.
NSF VLA Sky Survey Sets New Standard for High-Resolution, Wide-Area Radio Astronomy
The U.S. National Science Foundation National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NSF NRAO) has completed observations for the Very Large Array Sky Survey (VLASS), the most detailed radio survey of the sky ever conducted.