Scientists Release the First Image of a Massive Black Hole
Here’s how they did it
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Of all the enigmatic phenomena in our universe, there’s perhaps one that has captured our attention and imagination the most, even though we had never actually seen one: the black hole. These space objects are so dense that even light cannot escape their grip. Ever since Einstein first proposed their existence, we’ve made simulations, art, and CGI versions of what we imagine black holes could look like. But it wasn’t until this morning that we saw a black hole for the first time. We have finally gazed into the cosmic abyss.
On Wednesday morning, teams of scientists around the world who work on an experiment called the Event Horizon Telescope released a much anticipated image of the ultramassive black hole at the center of the M87 galaxy. This galaxy is 55 million light-years away in the Virgo supercluster, and it is 6.5 billion times more massive than our sun. “You’re looking at a black hole that is essentially the size of our entire solar system,” says Sera Markoff, EHT team member and professor of theoretical astrophysics at the University of Amsterdam.
Capturing an image of a black hole is exceedingly difficult. It’s not like taking a photo of a planet, or a cluster of stars, or even another galaxy. It’s not as simple as using the Hubble Space Telescope. “We never thought this was possible,” says Priyamvada Natarajan, professor of astronomy and physics at Yale University.
Natarajan is not involved with the EHT team, but she’s been studying black holes for nearly 20 years. “We’re in the grip of a black hole!” she said, hardly able to contain her excitement. She and many others in her field have waited years for this data. It did not disappoint.
The Event Horizon Telescope is an array of radio telescopes around the world that are collectively so powerful that together they create a telescope as large as the Earth. The images and data they produce are so massive that the scientists had to wait to capture the images until hard drives existed that could hold all the information. “It is a huge technical feat,” says Natarajan.
“It’s a reframing of our cosmic view.”
