A black hole finally (un) seen in the centre of a galaxy : the sharpest image ever

Nityananda, Rajaram (2019) A black hole finally (un) seen in the centre of a galaxy : the sharpest image ever. Resonance: Journal of Science Education, 24 (5). pp. 517-527. ISSN 0973-712X

Preview

Text - Published Version Download (566kB) | Preview

Abstract

The uneven ring of radio emission at the centre of the distantgalaxy,M87,hasexcitedastronomers,physicists,andthe general public, as the first view of a black hole. Everything about the project, known as the EHT – Event Horizon Telescope – is extreme. The observation combines signals from radio telescopes distributed over an entire hemisphere, operating at millimetre wavelengths on high mountains and at the Earth’s poles. These telescopes are synchronised by the best atomic clocks, and massive amounts of data recording and number crunching were needed. To interpret the results, elaborate models of the energy source, based on Einstein’s general theory of relativity (GTR) were constructed. The team had over three hundred scientists from more than a hundred institutions, some of whom worked for nearly a decadetowardsthisgoal.

Item Type:	Article
Authors:	Nityananda, Rajaram
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Black holes, EHT, Event horizon, Radio astronomy, Interferometry
Subjects:	Natural Sciences > Astronomy & allied sciences
Divisions:	Azim Premji University > School of Arts and Sciences
Full Text Status:	Public
Related URLs:	Google Scholar
URI:	http://publications.azimpremjiuniversity.edu.in/id/eprint/1997
Publisher URL:	https://www.ias.ac.in/article/fulltext/reso/024/05...

Actions (login required)

View Item