What do you thinks is at the center of our galaxy?

[TechnicalK3rbal]

Exactly what the title says. And please post a reason for your answer.

[BeefTenderloin]

A super-massive black hole.

The star S2 follows an elliptical orbit with a period of 15.2 years and a pericenter (closest distance) of 17 light-hours (1.8×1013 m or 120 AU) from the center of the central object.

From the motion of star S2, the object's mass can be estimated as 4.1 million solar masses, or about 8.2×1036 kg.

The radius of the central object must be less than 17 light-hours, because otherwise, S2 would collide with it. In fact, recent observations indicate that the radius is no more than 6.25 light-hours, about the diameter of Uranus' orbit.

Any model of an astronomical object but a black hole is not foreseen to contain 4.1 million solar masses in this volume of space.

[Tex_NL]

A super massive black hole. Why? Because that's the general scientific believe. Stellar observations show stars orbiting something invisible at incredible speeds so whatever they orbit must be generating some serious gravity. The only thing known to modern science that is both invisible and generate enough gravity to explain the fast stellar orbits is a super massive black hole.

Edit:

Got ninja'd with pretty much the same answer.

[Camacha]

Exactly what the title says. And please post a reason for your answer.

Well, what do you think? It is no good starting a thread without giving the right example

[Mr Tegu]

The flying spaghetti monster OFC.

Reason: It's scripture; how dare you question my faith!!!!!1 !!11?!1

[lajoswinkler]

Only a supermasive black hole fits the observations.

[PakledHostage]

The flying spaghetti monster OFC.

Infidel! It's Russel's teapot.

[Dominatus]

Okay, getting back on subject... Supermassive black hole. It's been essentially confirmed seeing as how nothing else can fit the observations. And- correct me if I'm wrong- but I beleive I heard something about how we detected the "belch" of energy emitted from these objects similar to that detected from normal black holes. So if the others have it, it makes sense that it would remain true for us. Keep in mind that I heard about that awhile ago- may have mixed stuff up. ;P

[Geschosskopf]

I thought it was the guy who developed Spore. I could have sworn I went to the center of the galaxy and met him there

[Motokid600]

[Agent86]

The Half Live 3 Dev Team.

[OrtwinS]

That is a very neat picture.

This is an intrueging 'constellation' of intersecting orbit planes.

Those stars must be stable in some form for them to be still around like that. (though of course, these are all very tiny dots of matter compared to the space in between. and their gravitational interaction is neglectible compared to the forces of the anomaly in the middle).

Would be spectacular when 2 of them collide...

[magnemoe]

That is a very neat picture.

This is an intrueging 'constellation' of intersecting orbit planes.

Those stars must be stable in some form for them to be still around like that. (though of course, these are all very tiny dots of matter compared to the space in between. and their gravitational interaction is neglectible compared to the forces of the anomaly in the middle).

Would be spectacular when 2 of them collide...

More probably that they would change orbits so one get to close to the hole and get ripped apart.

[MC.STEEL]

Infidel! It's Russel's teapot.

that will be fun to make in universe sandbox

[simplerocketscience]

a black hole:confused:I say this because thats what my science teacher says

[Ravenchant]

-snip-

There must be hundreds of astronomers around who would happily give a few years of their life to witness that show firsthand.

Just look at S14... it must be bleeding off significant mass already

[Dispatcher]

The correct answer is the Lh'owon solar system, of which Lh'owon is the home world of a race known as the S'pht. The population was conquered and enslaved by an alien race known as the Pfhor, in our year 1811 AD.

Source: Bungie Software Products Corporation. Material sources: http://marathon.bungie.org/story/lhowon.html#1

http://marathon.bungie.org/story/timetable.html

[Starwaster]

Kerbals. Kerbals are at the center of our galaxy, doing Science!!!

a black hole:confused:I say this because thats what my science teacher says

Tell your teacher that the local water supply is contaminated with DHMO and warn him about how deadly DMHO (Dihydrogen Monoxide) is. If he does not fall for it and properly puts you in your place then maybe you can trust him about the black hole thing.

If on the other hand he doesn't 'get it' and falls for the bit about how solid DHMO can cause bruising or how in gaseous form it causes burns or in liquid form is a suffocation hazard... well, he must not know very much science then.

(my cousin took a DHMO printout I gave her to her science teacher in highschool and he didn't get it)

Edited December 8, 2013 by Starwaster

[bombo1]

maybe a supermassive dark star that has a gravity strong enough to suck its own light back to the surface.

[Tex_NL]

maybe a supermassive dark star that has a gravity strong enough to suck its own light back to the surface.

You do know that what your talking about IS a black hole, don't you?

[Klingon Admiral]

There is probably nothing at the center of the galaxy. According to orbital mechanics even Sagittarius A* is merely orbiting around the galaxy'

s barycenter. The interesting question might be if this barycenter is located beyond the event horizon or not.

[Tex_NL]

There is probably nothing at the center of the galaxy. According to orbital mechanics even Sagittarius A* is merely orbiting around the galaxy'

s barycenter. The interesting question might be if this barycenter is located beyond the event horizon or not.

How can 'nothing' have an 'event horizon'? You are contradicting yourself. You're saying there is and there isn't anything at the center. A statement like this might work on the quantum level but not on the macro level.

[Klingon Admiral]

How can 'nothing' have an 'event horizon'? You are contradicting yourself. You're saying there is and there isn't anything at the center. A statement like this might work on the quantum level but not on the macro level.

Sagittarius A* would be at the center of the galaxy if the singularity itself would be located on the barycenter of the galaxy. Celestial mechanics make this scenario impossible, the same principles that make stars with planets wobble result in Sgr A* not being fixed in space. Bjut with the scales orders of magnitude larger than in a planetary system, and Sgr A* is apparently as large as Mercury's orbit, so downright miniscule. And even if the center of the galaxy lies within the event horizon, the correct answer would be that we don't know what is at the center of the galaxy, as it is located beyond an event horizon.

[ggmaster]

Chinese believe that their forbidden city is the center of our galaxy.

[Seret]

And even if the center of the galaxy lies within the event horizon, the correct answer would be that we don't know what is at the center of the galaxy, as it is located beyond an event horizon.

Since a barycentre is a conceptual object rather than a physical one there's no logical reason why it couldn't lie within an event horizon.