For the first time, researchers have discovered a binary star, a system of two stars orbiting each other near the Sagittarius A* (Sgr A*) supermassive black hole at the center of our galaxy. Binary stars have been observed as a common phenomenon elsewhere in the universe, but have never been observed near supermassive black holes.
The pair of stars, called D9, was revealed in data collected by the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (VLT) in Chile. Introducing a new look Nature Communication ResearchThe discovery of D9 demonstrated that binary stars can briefly withstand the extreme gravity generated by black holes of significant proportions. Sergeant A*.
“Black holes are not as destructive as we thought,” said Florian Peißker, lead author of the study and a researcher at the University of Cologne in Germany. name.
elastic binary star
Typically, the gravitational pull exerted by supermassive black holes tears apart stars that get too close and triggers tidal collapse. This is what stars experience. spaghetti; This process doesn’t exactly sound threatening, but it represents the death of a star that stretches vertically as a black hole engulfs it. Meanwhile, debris gathers near the black hole and begins to swirl around it, forming bright, superheated matter. accretion disk.
But new research shows that some binaries can survive these conditions, albeit only for a short time. The researchers appear to have caught D9 at the right moment. The binary star is estimated to be 2.7 million years old (very young for a stellar system), and will likely merge gravitationally into a single star within 1 million years.
Scientists previously thought stars could not form near supermassive black holes, but this notion was reversed as black holes began to collect. young star Found near Sgr A*. Now D9 adds the idea that star systems may exist near supermassive black holes and calls into question the environment of these black holes.
Read more: Astronomers discover baffling black hole that existed 13 billion years ago
What’s around a supermassive black hole?
D9 was discovered in a cluster of stars and other objects called the S cluster that orbits Sgr A*. Researchers are trying to decipher strange things within this cluster, called G objects, which behave like stars but look like clouds of gas and dust. While studying the surrounding objects of Sgr A*, they discovered that D9 is two stars orbiting each other.
This discovery could help researchers determine the true identity of G-Object. They say this object could be a combination of a binary star that has not yet merged and leftover material from a star that has already merged.
The origin of the objects surrounding Sgr A* is still up in the air. Researchers are primarily interested in how this object can form so close to a supermassive black hole. Sgr A* has previously made headlines. 2022 and earlier 2024 When captured in an image showing a swirling magnetic field.
Efforts to study supermassive black holes and nearby objects will soon be boosted by the GRAVITY+ upgrade to the VLT interferometer and the METIS instrument on the Very Large Telescope, an observatory soon under construction in Chile. For now, the results from D9 raise exciting possibilities for the future of the study of stars and even planets near supermassive black holes.
“Our discovery allows us to speculate about the existence of planets, as planets often form around young stars. It seems plausible that detection of a planet in the center of the galaxy is only a matter of time,” said Peißker.
Read more: Black holes eat much more voraciously and wreak havoc than we previously thought.
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Jack Knudson is an assistant editor at Discover and has a keen interest in environmental science and history. Before joining Discover in 2023, he studied journalism at Ohio University’s Scripps College of Communication and previously interned at Recycling Today magazine.
