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Inside a black hole
Have you ever wanted to go to the center of the galaxy and witness the power of a supermassive black hole in person? With today's technology, humans could not travel 25,640 light-years from Earth to the supermassive black hole of the Milky Way in one lifetime. Nor could we survive so close to the extreme gravitational forces of a singularity. But a new simulation of virtual reality gives us all the chance to approach a black hole and feel the effects of their immense attraction on time and space.
Scientists from Radboud University in the Netherlands and Goethe University in Germany used computer models of Sagittarius A *, the black hole in the heart of the Milky Way. With the help of a series of detailed images of the models, the team has developed a 360-degree VR simulation of Sagittarius A *. This resulting simulation can be viewed with any virtual reality device.
"Our virtual reality simulation creates one of the most realistic views of the black hole's direct environment and will help us learn more about the behavior of black holes. Living in a black hole in our lives is impossible, so immersive visualizations like this can help us better understand these systems from where we are, "said Jordy Davelaar, corresponding author of the research paper behind this project in a press release.
VR Awareness
According to Davelaar, this simulation could also serve as a tool for dissemination and education, making astrophysics accessible to the general public. He added that children who have seen the simulation so far have been able to learn from it, showing that this could be an excellent educational tool, even for complex subjects like black holes.
Virtual reality is finding new and exciting uses in both outreach and education environments, giving users the ability to penetrate otherwise inaccessible environments. This is the first time anyone uses technology to give us a chance to enter a black hole.
BMC
New research continues to expand our understanding of black holes, and their design by scientists has changed dramatically in recent decades.
"We all have a clear idea of the supposed appearance of black holes, but science has progressed and we can now produce much more accurate renderings – and these black holes are very different from those we are used to. These new visualizations are only a beginning and more to come, "said Heino Falcke, co-author and professor of astrophysics at Radboud University.
Their article was published November 19 in the newspaper Computational Astrophysics and Cosmology.
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