Wolkenfetzen um unser lokales supermassereiches Schwarzes Loch
Dieses mit dem Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) gewonnene Bild zeigt die Himmelsregion um Sagittarius A*, das supermassereiche Schwarze Loch im Zentrum unserer Milchstraße, das auf dem Bild mit einem kleinen Kringel markiert ist. Neuere Untersuchungen haben interessante Hinweise auf interstellare Gas- und Staubwolken zu Tage gefördert, die das Schwarze Loch mit hoher Geschwindigkeit umkreisen.
Die gefundenen Gaswolken, die größtenteils aus molekularem Wasserstoff bestehen, werden auch als molekulare Cloudlets (deutsch: Wölkchen) bezeichnet. Man hatte diese bisher noch nie zweifelsfrei nachweisen können. Dieses Bild zeigt eigentlich die Verteilung von molekularem Kohlenmonoxid, dem zweithäufigsten molekularen Bestandteil der Wolken. Die Cloudlets sind etwa 26.000 Lichtjahre von uns entfernt und kreisen mit hoher Geschwindigkeit und relativ nahe um das Schwarze Loch, nur etwa ein Lichtjahr entfernt. Ihre Entdeckung war nur durch die hohe Auflösung von ALMA möglich. Sie sind aus bereits vorher existierenden massereichen Wolken hervorgegangen, die um das Zentrum unserer Milchstraße rotierten. Diese Wolken wurden dann durch Gezeitenkräfte zerfetzt und in dichte Fragmente und eine kurzlebige Komponente mit niedriger Dichte zerlegt. Letztere konnte anhand der Signatur in der Synchrotronstrahlung indentifiziert werden, welche von Sagittarius A* emittiert wird und das diffuse Gas zwischen den Cloudlets passiert.
Obwohl Wolken aus molekularem Gas neue Sterne bilden können, werden diese Cloudlets wohl keine neue Sterngeneration hervorbringen. Sie haben eine relativ kleine Masse von etwa dem 60-fachen unserer Sonne und befinden sich im Strudel der gewaltigen, turbulenten Gravitationskräfte von Sagittarius A*.
Während die Sterne um Sagittarius A* bereits systematisch untersucht wurden, hatte man diese dichten Molekülwolken in so unmittelbarar Nachbarschaft zum galaktischen Zentrum bisher noch nicht nachweisen können.
Bildnachweis:ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO)/ J. R. Goicoechea (Instituto de Física Fundamental, CSIC, Spain)
Über das Bild
| ID: | potw1843a |
| Sprache: | de-ch |
| Typ: | Beobachtung |
| Veröffentlichungsdatum: | 22. Oktober 2018 06:00 |
| Größe: | 806 x 892 px |
Über das Objekt
| Name: | Sagittarius A* |
| Typ: | Milky Way : Galaxy : Component : Central Black Hole |
| Entfernung: | 25000 Lichtjahre |
| Constellation: | Sagittarius |
Bildschirm-Hintergrundbilder
Koordinaten
| Position (RA): | 17 45 40.06 |
| Position (Dec): | -29° 0' 36.81" |
| Field of view: | 0.95 x 1.05 arcminutes |
| Orientierung: | Die Nordrichtung liegt -0.0° links zur Vertikale |
Farben & Filter
| Spektralbereich | Wellenlänge | Teleskop |
|---|---|---|
| Millimeter CO | 866 μm | Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array Band 8 |
| Infrarot Ne II | 12 μm | NASA Infrared Telescope Facility TEXES |
| Millimeter CO | 866 μm | Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array Band 8 |
| Infrarot Ne II | 12 μm | NASA Infrared Telescope Facility TEXES |
| Millimeter H13CN | 893 μm | Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array Band 8 |
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