Discovery · c. 2020 CE
The Milky Way's Central Black Hole
History of Astronomy
Overview
Over three decades, the teams of Reinhard Genzel and Andrea Ghez tracked stars orbiting the centre of the Milky Way, revealing a four-million-solar-mass black hole, Sagittarius A*.
Why it matters
The most convincing evidence for a supermassive black hole; recognised with the 2020 Nobel Prize in Physics.
Credit
Objects & facilities
Bearing on theory
Knowledge connections
- Discovered byReinhard Genzel
- Discovered byAndrea Ghez
- Part ofContemporary Astronomy
- Related toSagittarius A*
- Related toThe Milky Way
- Discovered atW. M. Keck Observatory
- Discovered atVery Large Telescope (VLT)
- ConfirmedGeneral Relativity
- Related toBlack Hole
- Related toSupermassive Black Hole
- Discovered viaSagittarius A* — The Milky Way's Black Hole
Sources & references
The primary and reference sources this topic draws on.
- The Nobel PrizeThe Nobel Foundation
Official record of Nobel laureates, prize motivations, and award years.
- ESOEuropean Southern Observatory
Southern-hemisphere observatory data and imagery (VLT, ALMA partner).