A Very Massive Stellar Black Hole in the Milky Way GalaxyNovember 27, 2001VLT ISAAC Uncovers an Enigmatic Microquasar One of the most enigmatic stellar systems in our Milky Way Galaxy has been shown to harbour a very massive black hole. With 14 times more mass than the Sun, this is the heaviest known stellar black hole in the Galaxy. Using the ISAAC instrument on the VLT 8.2-m ANTU telescope at the ESO
Paranal Observatory, an international team of astronomers peered into a remote area of the Milky Way to probe the binary system GRS 1915+105, located almost 40,000 light-years away. They were able to identify the low-mass star that feeds the black hole by means of a steady flow of stellar material. A detailed follow-up study revealed how this star revolves around its hungry companion. The analysis of the orbital motion then made it possible to estimate the mass of the black hole. The observation of the heavy black hole in GRS 1915+105 is opening up fundamental questions about how massive stellar black holes form, and whether or not such objects rotate around their own axes. The team consists of Jochen Greiner, Mark McCaughrean (Astrophysical Institute Potsdam, Germany) and Jean-Gabriel Cuby (European Southern Observatory, Chile). Read the details in ESO Press Release 24/01 (with three illustrations and all weblinks), available at http://www.eso.org/outreach/press-rel/pr-2001/pr-24-01.html European Southern Observatory (ESO) | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Related Black Hole News Articles A new method to weigh giant black holes How do you weigh the biggest black holes in the universe? One answer now comes from a new and independent technique that UC Irvine scientists and other astronomers have developed using data from NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory. UCSB professor's paper on safety of large hadron collider to be published in Physical Review D Particle colliders creating black holes that could devour the Earth. Sounds like a great Hollywood script. Radio Telescopes Reveal Unseen Galactic Cannibalism Radio-telescope images have revealed previously-unseen galactic cannibalism -- a triggering event that leads to feeding frenzies by gigantic black holes at the cores of galaxies. Astronomers have long suspected that the extra-bright cores of spiral galaxies called Seyfert galaxies are powered by supermassive black holes consuming material. However, they could not see how the material is started on its journey toward the black hole. Black holes have simple feeding habits The biggest black holes may feed just like the smallest ones, according to data from NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory and ground-based telescopes. This discovery supports the implication of Einstein's relativity theory that black holes of all sizes have similar properties, and will be useful for predicting the properties of a conjectured new class of black holes. UC Santa Cruz physicists eagerly await launch of NASA space telescope they helped build When NASA launches its newest space observatory, physicists at the University of California, Santa Cruz, will be watching as the product of nearly 16 years of hard work blasts into orbit. Supernova birth seen for first time Astronomers have seen the aftermath of spectacular stellar explosions known as supernovae before, but until now no one has witnessed a star dying in real time. Discovery of most recent supernova in our galaxy The most recent supernova in our Galaxy has been discovered by tracking the rapid expansion of its remains. This result, using NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory and NRAO's Very Large Array (VLA), has implications for understanding how often supernovas explode in the Milky Way galaxy. Catching a Glimpse of a Black Hole's Fury Using the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA) and a host of international telescope partners, a team of researchers has made the clearest observation yet of innermost region of a black hole. Milky Way's Giant Black Hole Awoke from Slumber 300 Years Ago Using NASA, Japanese, and European X-ray satellites, a team of Japanese astronomers has discovered that our galaxy's central black hole let loose a powerful flare three centuries ago. RIT Team Simulates First Merger of Three Black Holes on a Supercomputer The same team of astrophysicists that cracked the computer code simulating two black holes crashing and merging together has now, for the first time, caused a three-black-hole collision. More Black Hole News Articles |
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