Observing the black hole meant that it took many years to observe a mathematical formula or chart. The actual images are not known until the beginning of 2019. The event of the galaxy M87 was photographed by the Horizon Telescope (EHT).
This is because of the enormous concentration of the mass (which creates a “tear” or curve in space) Even the light cannot escape from there. It cannot be seen in that sense alone. What remains in view are its surroundings, which result in a central shadow surrounded by a glowing ring of photons and hot gas.
The Milky Way, where the Earth is located, is inside a The largest black hole, called Sagittarius A * The first real film was released today, May 12th.
“This is the first image of Sagittarius A *, a giant black hole in the center of our galaxy. It is four million times larger than the Sun. We present the first direct visual evidence of its existence, “said Sarah Isaon, a researcher at the Harvard Astronomical Center.
These findings were also published in a special edition of the scientific journal The Astrophysical Journal Letters, which provide tremendous evidence and provide clues about the activity of such giants, it is believed, They live in the center of most galaxies.
According to the hole, more than 300 scientists from 80 centers participated in the study Four million solar masses “weigh” Squeezed into an area no larger than our solar system 27,000 light-years away from our planet.
Confirm the prediction
Scientists have already seen galaxies orbiting something Invisible, compact and very large In the center of the Milky Way, Sagittarius A * (Sgr A *, pronounced “Satz-A-Star”), confirms that this object is a black hole.
“We were amazed at how well the ring size fits Predictions of the theory of relativity General Einstein ”, said Jeffrey Bower of the Academy of Sciences (Taipei), a leading scientist and astronomical institute for the EHT program. “These unprecedented observations greatly enhance our understanding of what is happening at the center of our galaxy and provide new insights into how giant black holes interact with their environment.”
How can it be noticed?
A. to observe an object as far as it can go Earth-sized telescope, Something achieved through EHT in a virtual or equivalent way.
This became the telescope Eight radio telescopes Chile is located in the United States, Mexico, Spain and the South Pole, although Alma, along with two other international partners, is operated by the European Southern Observatory (ESO) and the Millimetric Radio Astronomical Institute (IRAM) in Sierra Nevada (Grenada).
EHT Sgr A * observed several nights and collected data for several hours. Long exposure time On a camera.
Finally, with a technique called very long basic interferometry (VLBI, which uses mathematical functions instead of lenses) The signals of all radio telescopes are connected And their data was processed by algorithms and supercomputers to reconstruct the optimal image.
Nobel Prize for black holes and physics
Black holes are the most intense objects in the universe. In 2020, three researchers shared the Nobel Prize in Physics for their progress in understanding these objects: Roger Benrose, for his discovery of black hole formation A definitive prediction of the theory of general relativity Einstein; And jointly by Reinhard Jensel and Professor Andrea Guess for their discovery of the center of the Milky Way.
The orbits of the stars so far have been the most convincing evidence that a large black hole is lurking in Sagittarius A *.
