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"G2" Approaches the Galactic Center

posted by Dopefish on Wednesday February 19 2014, @12:30PM   Printer-friendly
from the reconnoiter-the-dark-matter dept.

weeds writes:

"This has been going on for some time and the date of closest approach keeps getting pushed back. Here is the latest report from the New York Times on the approach of a gas cloud called G2 towards the Galactic Center.

Black holes, which are the ultra-dense, collapsed objects predicted by Einstein's theory of general relativity, are often depicted as voracious feeders whose extraordinary gravity acts like a one-way membrane: Everything is sucked in, even light, and virtually nothing leaks out.

Now, for the first time, astronomers may have a chance to watch as a giant black hole consumes a cosmic snack.

In March or April, the gas cloud G2, which has been hurtling toward the center of the Milky Way, is expected to collide with Sagittarius A*, a black hole that lies just 26,000 light-years away from Earth."

 
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  • (Score: 1) by mcgrew on Wednesday February 19 2014, @05:34PM

    by mcgrew (701) on Wednesday February 19 2014, @05:34PM (#2883) Homepage Journal

    You might try actually (gasp) READING THE ARTICLE. They really don't know, but it's pretty certain you won't see it without a really big telescope.

    But there should be a few pretty pictures. But whatever happens, we will certainly learn something.

    What interested me is... this cloud is my birthday cake! It's supposed to happen in a time frame from three weeks before to three weeks after my birthday. I get a cosmic light show on my birthday!

    Hey, you, get offa my cloud...

    --
    Free Nobots! [mcgrewbooks.com]

  • (Score: 1) by Zinho on Thursday February 20 2014, @10:39AM

    by Zinho (759) on Thursday February 20 2014, @10:39AM (#3459)

    You might try actually (gasp) READING THE ARTICLE. They really don't know, but it's pretty certain you won't see it without a really big telescope.

    Wait, this "article" you speak of, what is it?

    Oh, do you mean the FA in RTFA; are we doing that here? I'm confused...

    Of course, your response lets me know that TFA wouldn't have answered my question anyhow ;^)