Astronomers have discovered a huge black hole that was formed as a result of the explosion of a star just 2 light-years from Earth. About this the The Guardian.
It is currently the largest black hole in the Milky Way, which researchers discovered by observing a star in the constellation Eagle that was affected by the force of a cosmic object. The motion indicated that the star was being pulled by a black hole 33 times more massive than the Sun.
"Complete surprise. It is the most massive black hole of stellar origin in our galaxy and the second closest of all discovered. Such a discovery happens only once in a researcher's life." said Dr. Pasquale Panuzzo, an astronomer and member of the Gaia mission at the Paris Observatory.
Further observations from the European Southern Observatory telescope in Chile's Atacama Desert confirmed the mass of the black hole and the orbit of the star, which revolves around it every 11,6 years.
Measurements of the companion star showed no signs that it was contaminated by material ejected from the stellar explosion that formed the black hole. This indicates that the black hole formed long before it captured the companion star in its powerful gravitational field.
Stellar black holes are formed when massive stars collapse at the end of their lives. Dozens of them have been discovered in the Milky Way, most of them weighing about 10 times the mass of the Sun. The most impressive black hole in the Milky Way, Sagittarius A, has a combined mass of several million Suns. It is hidden in the very heart of the galaxy and was not formed from the explosion of a star, but as a result of the collapse of huge clouds of dust and gas.
100-meter stellar black holes may exist in the Milky Way, but despite their enormous mass and the powerful forces they generate, they can be extremely difficult to detect.
A major report on this black hole was to be released in 2025. However, due to the importance of the discovery, the researchers published data about it earlier than planned.
To always be aware of the most important things, read us at Telegram
