A team of astronomers has made a groundbreaking discovery that sheds new light on the most extreme parts of our galaxy. They have identified a binary star system orbiting the supermassive black hole Sagittarius A* at the center of the Milky Way, providing valuable insights into the behavior of stars near these cosmic monsters.
The newly discovered system, D9, is remarkable because it consists of two stars that are not only circling each other but also orbiting a black hole with a mass 4 million times that of our Sun. What’s astonishing is that this system has survived for about a million years in the violent neighborhood of Sagittarius A*, which is notorious for its intense gravitational forces.
To detect D9, researchers used the Very Large Telescope (VLT) to identify the characteristic “wobble” in its light, which is a telltale sign of two stars locked in orbit. This discovery has provided scientists with an invaluable opportunity to study what happens in the galaxy’s most extreme regions.
The implications of this finding are far-reaching. By analyzing the speed and distance of the stars’ orbits, astronomers have determined that D9 is approximately 2.7 million years old. The data also suggests that the system was not formed in the chaotic environment near Sagittarius A* but rather migrated to the galactic center.
The discovery of D9 has significant implications for our understanding of binary star systems and their role in creating hypervelocity stars. Hypervelocity stars are rare, speeding through the galaxy at more than 1,000 kilometers per second. Scientists believe that binary systems like D9 play a crucial role in generating these supercharged stars.
This groundbreaking discovery is a testament to the power of scientific inquiry and has opened up new avenues for research into the dynamics of the Milky Way’s core. By studying this binary system, scientists are piecing together the complex interactions between black holes, stars, and gravity.
For those interested in witnessing this phenomenon, Sagittarius A* can be located by finding Antares, the bright red star in the constellation Scorpio, and following the scorpion’s tail to the galactic center.
Source: https://dailygalaxy.com/2024/12/a-discovery-straight-out-of-sci-fi-astronomers-spot-star-twins-in-deadly-dance-around-milky-ways-black-hole