Star tracked as it orbits the Milky Way's black hole

Read more:
http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn16247?DCMP=youtube

Over a period of 16 years, astronomers tracked stars as they orbited the Milky Way's central region, which is thought to harbour a colossal black hole. One star, called S2, was observed over its complete 15.8-year-long orbit. The star approached the black hole to within one light day, which is only about five times the distance between Neptune and the Sun. (Courtesy of ESO)

Category:

Science & Technology

Tags:

• space
• black hole
• milky way
• sgra*
• new
• scientist
• newscientist

[Deathpod4]

What do you mean by "when a black hole fills up"? What limit is there that decides a black hole is full? It isn't like a hole in the ground. You do know that, right?

It seems according to observations that when black hole collide it makes a bigger black hole. Why is this wrong?

[MackleJack]

I'm going to block you, weirdo. Get a girlfriend. bye lol

[Deathpod4]

@4d616c65737469636b Thanks for your comment. I had to look back what I'd said as it was 2 years ago. I should have said that they gain mass, not get bigger, but it seems who ever I was talking too had no idea about cosmology anyway so you rather late game of semantics is futile. Perhaps you'd like me to send you some of my 1970's school homework so you can critique that as well.

[4d616c65737469636b]

@Deathpod4 It's not the black hole it self growing It's the event horizon.

[nonohino]

@sighhhhhhhhhhhhhhh The Void, eh?

[NarowAR07]

am i the only one expecting porn from the title ?

[taepodong1101]

@waterdamnaged andromeda is BIGGER with more stars (1trillion) compared to 100 billion for Milky way. Milkyway is more MASSIVE as there is (supposedly) more dark matter.

[TehKazangsta]

@ClitoriousCeasar agreed. :D

[ClitoriousCeasar]

@TehKazangsta lol.. the funniest think is that there are documentaries that try to estimate the fate of our solar system and earth after the collision. like our solar system will even exist by then.. most probably there will be a red giant with only jupiter-saturn-uranus-neptune still around (and there is a very likely possibility that one of uranus-neptune will be gone rogue much earlier). :)

[KONERKOSLAM14]

Zairuku, i agree, especially at this rate we driving ourselvea back to stoneage and a catastrophic natural cataclysm hasnt even happened yet.

[rotagen5]

How much fuel would it take to send our government "leaders" directly to this centre, and eject them naked into the hole, anyone know? I'm willing to pay more taxes to this end.

[xandju]

there's a black hole in the middle of the milkyway. our galaxy. the star you see the whipps around the bottom of it? 11mil miles/hr as it whips around lol.