Fastest Star Ever Found in Milky Way Could Reveal Black Hole's Spin
Astronomers have identified star S301, which orbits the supermassive black hole Sagittarius A* at an astonishing speed of 56 million miles per hour (8% of light speed). This marks the fastest star ever recorded in the Milky Way, following a highly elongated path that brings it within 12 times the distance between Earth and the sun, completing its orbit in 8.7 years. Notably, S301 is the first star capable of directly measuring the spin of Sagittarius A*, a task once thought unattainable. The research, led by Stefan Gillessen, suggests that S301 originated from a binary system disrupted by the black hole. These findings were published in Nature on August 19, with observations planned over the next decade to test Einstein's theory of relativity.
Key facts
- S301 is the fastest star ever recorded in the Milky Way, reaching speeds of about 56 million mph (8% the speed of light).
- S301 orbits Sagittarius A*, the supermassive black hole at the center of our galaxy, located 27,000 light-years from Earth.
- The star completes an orbit in 8.7 years and comes as close as 12 times the Earth-sun distance to the black hole.
- S301 is the first known star that could be used to directly measure the spin of Sagittarius A*.
- The findings were published August 19 in the journal Nature.
- The star was detected with the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope Interferometer in Chile.
- The research team includes Stefan Gillessen from the Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics and Juan Osorno from the Paris Observatory.
- S301 is believed to have been part of a binary system torn apart by the black hole's gravity.
Entities
Institutions
- Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics
- European Southern Observatory
- Paris Observatory
- University College London
- Nature
Locations
- Milky Way
- Earth
- Chile
- Germany
- France
- London
- United Kingdom