The clouds invade our local supermassive black hole

This image of Atacama's Large Atacama Quartz / Submillimetric Chart (ALMA) shows the region surrounding Sagittarius A *, a supermassive black hole hiding in the center of the Milky Way, highlighted here by a small circle. New research has revealed interesting evidence of interstellar gas and dust in orbit around the high-speed black hole.

The molecular hydrogen-rich gas clouds that have been identified are known as molecular cloudlets, and they have never been previously unambiguously detected. This image actually shows the distribution of molecules including carbon monoxide, the second most abundant molecular component of cloud clouds. The clouds are 26,000 light-years away from us, in fast orbit and relatively close to the black hole, at a distance of about a light-year. The high resolution of ALMA has allowed scientists to detect clouds, pre-existing massive cloud products revolving around the center of our galaxy. These clouds have been fragmented into dense fragments and low-density, short-lived components. The latter was identified by the signs left by the passage of synchrotron radiation emitted by Sagittarius A * through a diffuse gas between the clouds.

Although molecular gas clouds can form new stars, it is unlikely that these clouds will form stellate newborns. They have a relatively low mass about 60 times that of the Sun and exist near the enormous, turbulent and punitive gravitational forces exerted by Sagittarius A *.

While the stars in orbit around Sagittarius A * have been systematically observed, these dense black clouds have not yet been detected in the center of our galaxy.

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