All articles tagged with #galacticcenter
Astronomers used five years of ALMA observations, along with supporting data, to identify a wind emanating from the Milky Way’s central black hole, Sagittarius A*, including a southern lobe and evidence for a northern lobe. The wind consists of small gas wisps radiatively driven by the SMBH, demonstrating galactic-center feedback even from a relatively quiescent black hole.
Astronomers have discovered a globular cluster, VVV CL002, that is rapidly moving toward the Milky Way's center, which is dominated by powerful tidal forces and the supermassive black hole Sagittarius A*. This cluster is the closest known GC to the galactic center, with an orbit ranging from 619 to 3,400 light-years away. Its metallicity measurements suggest it is an old cluster, formed far from its current location. The study of VVV CL002 provides insights into the survival and migration mechanisms of globular clusters near the galactic center, although it is likely doomed to eventual destruction due to its trajectory towards this tumultuous region.
Astronomers using the Magellan Clay telescope have discovered that the globular cluster VVV CL002 is on a tight retrograde orbit and is falling towards the Milky Way's center. The cluster, located 23,800 light years away and discovered in 2011, has a high eccentricity orbit with perigalactocentric and apogalactocentric distances indicating it is well within the galactic bulge. The study, which also analyzed the cluster's chemical composition, suggests that VVV CL002 is an old cluster that was formed outside the central region and is now spiraling inward, likely to be destroyed in the future. Further observations could provide insights into the survival and migration of such clusters.