Sagittarius A* Black Hole

Discovering Sagittarius A*

Chapter 1

The invisible anchor at the center

Chapter 2

Taking the first picture of a monster

Chapter 3

Extreme physics in the danger zone

Chapter 4

The past and future of our black hole

YOUR GOAL

Master of Discovering Sagittarius A*

Ch 1 · The invisible anchor at the center

artiteacher Sagittarius A* Black Hole

At our Milky Way's core, yeah-eah! Sits Sgr A*, oh-oh! Four million Suns, so vast and bright, yeah-eah! Now its event horizon's in plain sight, oh-oh!

artiteacher The radio signal from Sagittarius

Weighing an invisible stellar shadow

artiteacher By studying stellar orbits, scientists calculated that Sagittarius A* is four million times heavier than our Sun.

Tracking the stars that dance in the dark

artiteacher Astronomers proved the black hole's existence by tracking stars orbiting an invisible object at blistering speeds.

Tiny Galactic Anchor

BETA

artiteacher Sling stars into orbit to discover how Sagittarius A* anchors our galaxy.

Fun Fact

Sgr A* name: The asterisk in Sagittarius A* was inspired by chemistry, where an asterisk denotes an excited atom.

Gossip

If you could safely visit Sagittarius A*, would you go?

Quiz

Which star was tracked for decades to prove Sagittarius A*'s gravity?

artiteacher Weighing an invisible stellar shadow

Quiz

Who co-discovered the radio source Sagittarius A* in 1974?

artiteacher Tracking the stars that dance in the dark

Quiz

What does the asterisk (*) in the name Sagittarius A* represent?

artiteacher Why it is a gentle giant

Quiz

In which constellation does the center of our galaxy lie?

Quiz

How many times heavier than our Sun is Sagittarius A*?

Quiz

What percentage of the speed of light does the star S-2 reach at its closest approach to Sagittarius A*?

Quiz

The diameter of Sagittarius A* would easily fit inside the orbit of which planet?

Quiz

For what discovery did Andrea Ghez and Reinhard Genzel win the 2020 Nobel Prize in Physics?