The black hole is about 27,000 light-years from Earth, and is four million times more massive than the Sun, according to a team of astronomers.
LOS ANGELES (ANTARA) – A team of astronomers unveiled the first images of the supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way galaxy on Thursday (12/5).
The image was produced by a global research team called the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT), using observations from a worldwide network of radio telescopes.
The image is the first direct visual evidence confirming the existence of a black hole, known as Sagittarius A*, at the center of the Milky Way galaxy, the US National Science Foundation (NSF) said in a release.
The black hole is about 27,000 light-years from Earth, and is four million times more massive than the Sun, according to a team of astronomers.
The effort to uncover the first images of the black hole was carried out by the ingenuity of more than 300 researchers from 80 institutes around the world who have come together to form the EHT Collaboration, the NSF said.
“Although we can’t observe the black hole itself, because it’s really dark, the glowing gas around the black hole reveals a special sign: a dark central area, called the ‘shadow’, (and) surrounded by a bright ring-like structure. ,” added NSF.
The new view captures light that is bent by the black hole’s strong gravity.
“We were amazed by how well the ring sizes matched predictions from Einstein’s General Theory of Relativity,” said EHT Project scientist Geoffrey Bower.
“This unprecedented observation really enhances our understanding of what’s happening at the center of our galaxy and provides new insights into how these giant black holes interact with their surroundings,” Bower said.
The breakthrough follows the release of the first images of a black hole, named M87*, at the center of the more distant galaxy Messier 87, by the EHT Collaboration in 2019.
“Now, we can study the differences between the two supermassive black holes to gain valuable new clues about how this important process works,” said EHT scientist Keiichi Asada.
“We have an image of two black holes, with one large and the other small, of the supermassive black holes in the universe, so we can go further in testing how gravity reacts in these extreme environments than before,” said Asada. .
The team of scientists began using the new data to test theories and models of how gases react around supermassive black holes. This process is not fully understood but is thought to have played a role in the formation and evolution of galaxies, according to the NSF.
Reporter: Xinhua
Editor: Virna P Setyorini
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