Space and Astronomy Megathread (MERGED) - Part 1

[Micromind]

 

[Micromind]

So..

This picture could challenge Einstein’s theory of general relativity

 

[Dr.]

This is pretty good...

 

[Breogan]

So..
This picture could challenge Einstein’s theory of general relativity

This is pretty good...

This is often done, yet among other things, I love this aspect; that to bring a black hole into focus for the first time, the whole planet had to be involved and essentially become one giant telescope to achieve this:





The global network team of telescopes:

The eight radio telescopes scattered across the globe — are in Hawaii, Arizona, Spain, Mexico, Chile, and the South Pole.
They are like the Avengers Assembled! of telescopes!

"... Imaging a black-hole at this wave length, requires a telescope as big as our planet. The the EHT (Event Horizon Telescope) uses a global network of dishes. to simulate a telescope of this size. Each dish collects and records radio-waves coming from near the black hole, the data are then combined to create the image of the event horizon" ...."

 

[jmc]

Live feed of the black hole reveal.

 

[jmc]

Here's the image!

 

[RetrogradeOrbit]

Here's the BBC`s take on the Black Hole...

First ever black hole image released

 

[Monsieur Xavier]

Dr. Hans Reinhardt was right

 

[Micromind]

Is it an actual image that can be seen in visible spectrum ? (I haven't read any articles since the image was released.)

 

[terry78]

When we can actually see one with the naked eye is about the time it's ok to start a panic.

 

[Breogan]

Live feed of the black hole reveal.

Thanks! above was ^ the Euro press conference
and bellow was the US press conference

 

[Brutikus]

MIT's Katie Bouman with the huge stack of hard drives used for Messier 87's black hole image data, via Paul Coxon on Twitter

 

[Dr.]

Is it an actual image that can be seen in visible spectrum ? (I haven't read any articles since the image was released.)

No; it's an image from radio telescopes. For example, here's a NASA image of the Crab Nebula at different wavelengths...

 

[Flash525]

When we can actually see one with the naked eye is about the time it's ok to start a panic.

By the time we'd be able to see one with the naked eye, I think we'd be beyond the panic stage.

 

[Breogan]

Although nothing can see it, since light doesn't escape it, as far as the hot disk of material that encircles it, when we look towards the "Galactic Center" in the direction of Sagittarius, where the Milky Way is brightest, aren't we pretty much looking at it (that is seeing the light generated from it) with the naked eye. ?
Isn't that what told us to point our telescopes there to begin with?

 

[Brutikus]

 

[Breogan]

MIT's Katie Bouman with the huge stack of hard drives used for Messier 87's black hole image data, via Paul Coxon on Twitter

Yay look at all the data we get to sift through! LOL!

She's actually pretty awesome, going back to when this was being announced ...

 

[Dr.]

Galactic cores (where supermassive black holes live) are very dense with stars and gas - which, in turn, means lots of chaotic gravity and dangerous levels of radiation. So it’s speculated that the odds of life/evolution near galactic cores may be quite slim. On the other hand, the black hole at the center of M87 is huge…




… So there might be a “sweet spot” where a star system/planet is at a reasonably safe distance and still has a good view of the black hole. It would make for a spectacular night sky.

 

[Donner]

Katie Bouman is ****ing cool. She's only 29.

It's a good day for human history.

 

[HKpowerup]

How they managed to get the image (or rather construct it) is almost as fascinating as the photograph itself (the global coordination, algorithms, etc.). There is apparently going to be a documentary released about the project & their efforts, can't wait to see it.

 

[Teelie]

Katie Bouman is ****ing cool. She's only 29.

It's a good day for human history.

The internet trolls tried downplaying her role by saying a white guy was behind the majority of the code. He responded with basically "no, that is not true and stop trying to steal credit from Katie Bouman by giving it to me." on top of that he is an openly gay man (which they probably didn't realize).

 

[Donner]

The internet trolls tried downplaying her role by saying a white guy was behind the majority of the code. He responded with basically "no, that is not true and stop trying to steal credit from Katie Bouman by giving it to me." on top of that he is an openly gay man (which they probably didn't realize).

Humanity is trash.

 

[Teelie]

Some of it is. The rest of it is just trying to get by without smelling too much of the stench.

 

[Dr. Evil]

 

[wiegeabo]

Glad she's back.