Massive Black Hole Discovered in Omega Centauri

July 12, 2024

New studies published in the journal Nature have proven that the Omega Centauri star cluster has an intermediate-mass black hole. This group of galaxies, which is only 18,000 light-years away, is now the nearest huge black hole known to our solar system.

What is an Intermediate-Mass Black Hole?

Scientists haven’t been able to find any intermediate-mass black holes (IMBHs). These black holes are between the well-studied star black holes, which have masses of up to a few tens of solar masses, and the huge supermassive black holes that are found at the centers of galaxies. Different theories say that IMBHs have masses between 100,000 and a few hundred thousand times that of the Sun. Their finding is very important for understanding how galaxies change over time and how the early universe worked.

The Omega Centauri Phenomenon

Astronomers have been interested in Omega Centauri for a long time because it is the Milky Way’s most massive globular cluster and could be the core of a smaller galaxy that has been swallowed. It was thought to have a black hole inside, but this wasn’t proven until recent studies with the Hubble Space Telescope. Looking at old data and noticing how fast some stars were moving—they were stopped from leaving the cluster by a huge, unknown force—the idea of an IMBH with at least 8,200 solar masses was strengthened.

Methodology and Discovery

For the study, more than 500 old Hubble Space Telescope pictures were looked at. These pictures showed views made over 20 years. With these pictures, the speeds of 1.4 million stars in Omega Centauri were found. The movement patterns of seven very fast-moving stars pointed to the gravitational pull of a huge object that had been hidden, which was later proven to be a black hole.

About Black hole formation pathways

The main way black holes are made is when huge stars run out of nuclear fuel and fall apart under their weight. There are other ways, like direct collapse, which avoids making stars. This usually happens in thick areas where hydrogen clouds form a black hole directly. Through gravitational waves, binary star systems can join to form black holes. Sometimes, supermassive black holes are made when large clouds of gas fall directly into each other in the early stages of a galaxy, or they can be made when smaller black holes merge progressively. Over time, black holes get bigger because they take in more matter and collide with other black holes.

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