The very first photo of a supermassive black hole could be unveiled next week. Here is what you need to know



[ad_1]

Youtube

A graphic reproduction of a black hole.

SALT LAKE CITY – They are millions of times bigger than the sun; nothing, not even light, can escape them; and now, for the first time in the history of humanity, we can see the first picture of a supermassive black hole as early as next week.

What is happening: On 10 April at 15:00 CEST (7:00 am), the European Commission, the European Research Council and the Event Horizon Telescope project will hold a press conference with the aim of presenting an "innovative result" from the EHT .

  • The EHT project is an international collaboration aimed at capturing the first picture of a black hole. Scientists at the press conference will unveil a photo of "Sagittarius A", a supermassive black hole in the center of the Milky Way galaxy. .

Sagittarius A is about 4 million times the mass of the sun and 26,000 light-years away from Earth, according to NASA. It is one of the few black holes in the universe with a near material flow that humans can observe.

Black holes are collapsed stars or a squeezed mass with a force of gravity so powerful that light can not escape, making them almost invisible, according to NASA.


1
comment on this story

However, "the event horizon" of a black hole – the point outside a black hole where the light can not reach the exit speed – is theoretically possible to photograph, and he is very likely this will be shown at the conference next week, according to USA Today.

How can you watch: The conference will be webcast on the European Southern Observatory website, a live video from the European Commission on YouTube and social media at 3pm. CEST, or 7 o'clock in the morning, according to ESO.

  • Six major press conferences will also be held simultaneously around the world, including in Washington, DC, ESO reported.

[ad_2]

Source link