Three times closer to Earth than the nearest black hole identified so far
New research results
New Black Hole Discovered: Three times closer than other black holes
This image is the first direct visual evidence of a black hole.
© Source: Event Horizon Telescope (EHT)/dpa
Astronomers have discovered a so-called black hole in space that is closer to Earth than other known phenomena of this type. It is ten times more massive than the Sun and, at 1,600 light-years from Earth, three times closer than the nearest black hole identified so far, said Kareem El-Badry of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics on Friday.
Super telescope reveals black hole in the Milky Way
Scientists on Thursday presented for the first time an image of the black hole at the center of the Milky Way.
© Source: dpa
The nearby black hole was first identified by Europe’s Gaia spacecraft, El-Badry said. His team followed the trail with the International Gemini Observatory in Hawaii and confirmed the results. The black hole was identified based on the movements of its companion star. This orbits the black hole at about the same distance as the earth orbits the sun.
It is unclear to the researchers how the system formed in the Milky Way. It was given the name Gaia BH1 and is located in the star constellation Ophiuchius, German name serpent carrier.
RND/AP
