Black Hole Captured!

What is a Black Hole?

A black hole is a great amount of matter where gravity is extremely enough that does not allow any particle or electromagnetic radiation can escape from it. It is a regional spacetime with overwhelming gravitational acceleration.

Over the past centuries, astrophysicists base their evidence about black hole on indirect observations, hypothetical data, and scientific theories. Recently, however, scientists have managed to take a photo of a black hole using the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT).

The series of telescopes are focused on the target which is the black hole. Data is then gathered and collected in the different locations of the telescope, each providing a portion of the virtual telescope's full view. The more small telescopes used the better imaging can be produced.

The VLBI techniques had been widely used in tracking spacecraft and the behavior of most cosmic bodies. It is also used for imaging distant cosmic radio sources such as nebulae, quasars, pulsars, and radio galaxies.

The image of the black hole shows a fiery disc of accreted gases surrounding the black hole which is located at the core of the Messier 87 galaxy. It has a diameter of 38 billion kilometers or 23.6 million miles with an active supermassive colossus that lurks at 55 million light-years from Earth.

The imaging shows a dark area at the center of the ring that represents the shadow of the black hole. A clear view of the black hole itself is very difficult to "see," however, the gases that seemingly corresponds to the light of ring and the shadow produces the very first image of a black hole.

The image appears to be the representation of previous predictions of black holes. It shows the distortion of space and time caused by immense objects with massive gravitational acceleration.

Black hole is no longer a mere theory! The first image of the black hole says it all!

Join the Discussion

Recommended Stories

Real Time Analytics