A cluster of stars and gas surrounding the Milky Way’s supermassive black hole, known as Sagittarius A* or Sgr A*. (Image credit: ESO/D. Ribeiro for the MPE GC team)
A new image captured by the European Southern Observatory’s (ESO) Very Large Telescope (VLT) is helping astronomers discover a new cloud of gas orbiting the supermassive black hole at the heart of our Milky Way galaxy.
What is it?
This image offers a new view of the center of the Milky Way galaxy, where the supermassive black hole Sagittarius A* (or Sgr A*) resides. In the image, a dense cluster of stars and gas can be seen orbiting Sgr A*. Two clouds of gas known as G1 and G2 had been previously observed orbiting our galaxy’s black hole, but astronomers believe this image helps reveal the existence of a third cloud known as G2t.
The three clouds of gas likely originate from the same pair of massive stars, known as IRS16SW. “As IRS16SW moves around the black hole, each cloud of gas is ejected in a slightly different orbit, explaining the small differences in the trajectories of the ‘G-triplet'”, ESO wrote in a statement accompanying the image.
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Why is it amazing?
Like all black holes, astronomers can’t directly observe Sgr A* because even light can’t escape its gravitational pull. However, in 2022, scientists managed to capture an image of light, in the form of radio waves, from hot gases swirling around the edge of Sgr A*.
Observations of features like G2t are helping astronomers get a better glimpse at the “invisible giant” at the core of our cosmic home. “This discovery shows that, despite decades of monitoring our Milky Way center, new unanswered curiosities still arise,” the ESO wrote in the statement accompanying the image.
“But what could be more exciting than mysteries waiting to be solved?”