Zoom into Black Hole at the Center of Our Milky Way Galaxy | ESO

Zoom into Black Hole at the Center of Our Milky Way Galaxy | ESO

Watch as this video sequence zooms into the black hole (Sgr A*) at the centre of our galaxy. Beginning with a broad view of the Milky Way, we dive into the dense clouds of gas and dust at our galactic center. The stars here have been observed with the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope and ESO’s Very Large Telescope Interferometer for decades, the black hole’s immense gravitational pull distorting the orbits of the stars closest to it.  Finally, we arrive at Sgr A*, the first image of which has been captured by the EHT collaboration. The black hole is shown by a dark central region called a shadow, surrounded by a ring of luminous gas and dust. 

The various observations used here were taken at different times, by different teams and with different facilities, and put together for the purpose of the zoom effect. The images go from visible wavelengths at the beginning to infrared, with the very final image being taken at radio wavelengths.

Credit:

ESO/L. Calçada, N. Risinger (skysurvey.org), DSS, VISTA, VVV Survey/D. Minniti DSS, Nogueras-Lara et al., Schoedel, NACO, GRAVITY Collaboration, EHT Collaboration (Music: Azul Cobalto)

Duration: 52 seconds

Release Date: May 12, 2022

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