Center of the galaxy and the great attractor

In summary, the conversation discusses the center of our galaxy and other galaxies, which is mainly influenced by a supermassive black hole but also by gas and stars. It also mentions the Great Attractor, which is a large galaxy cluster that our local group may be gravitationally influenced by. The conversation also touches on dark matter and its role in holding galaxies together.
  • #1
WavesOfPhysics
6
0
I want to know about the center of our galaxy, and every other galaxy by the way, I heard that the condensed matter and light comes from a Super massive black hole that 'aspires' everything around it & I want to know if it's true ( If we have proved it ) or is it just a suposition, & by the way if it's true it also means that our galaxy and every other galaxy will end up sucked up by the super massive black hole ?

the second thing I want to ask about is the great attractor, what is it ?
 
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  • #2
Its is true yes. As i understand it there isn't always just one but there can be several supermassive black holes. Usually detected by immense jets of charged particles from the poles of the black holes and usually stars that are locked in a very fast and close orbit to the host black hole. And your question about the galaxy being sucked up by these supermassive black holes..the answer is no we wont. A black holes event horizon (ie the point of no return) is so small in comparison to the size of a galaxy it would never be able to consume anything on that scale...

Hope this helps
 
  • #3
WavesOfPhysics said:
the second thing I want to ask about is the great attractor, what is it ?

There is this REALLY nifty thing on the internet called "Google search". You should consider learning how to use it.
 
  • #4
one of the searches led to something like '...The source of this mysterious gravity is known as the Great Attractor. What it is, exactly, is still unknown.'
and I posted the topic after I did a research on google, but haven't understood it quite well
 
  • #5
Is it not closely linked with dark matter? Is gravity not just attached to a frame work and concentrations of dark matter. As gravity alone doesn't have the strength to hold a galaxy together. They found this as stars toward the centre of galaxys wer orbiting the the galaxy at the same speed as the outer most stars...which if only held by gravity wouldn't wirk...i think :s
 
  • #7
WavesOfPhysics said:
I want to know about the center of our galaxy, and every other galaxy by the way, I heard that the condensed matter and light comes from a Super massive black hole that 'aspires' everything around it & I want to know if it's true ( If we have proved it ) or is it just a suposition,

While a supermassive black hole does assist in attracting things towards the center of a galaxy, it is only a small component in that process. The gas and stars at the galactic center far outmass the black hole and exert more of an influence on a large scale.

RickBman said:
Is it not closely linked with dark matter? Is gravity not just attached to a frame work and concentrations of dark matter. As gravity alone doesn't have the strength to hold a galaxy together. They found this as stars toward the centre of galaxys wer orbiting the the galaxy at the same speed as the outer most stars...which if only held by gravity wouldn't wirk...i think :s

Dark matter helps hold everything together because it interacts with everything else through gravitation. Finding out that there is more gravity out there than there should be led us to hypothesize dark matter to begin with.
 

What is the center of the galaxy?

The center of the galaxy, also known as the Galactic Center, is the rotational center of the Milky Way galaxy. It is located approximately 26,000 light years away from Earth in the direction of the constellation Sagittarius.

How is the center of the galaxy formed?

The center of the galaxy is formed by a supermassive black hole, known as Sagittarius A*, which has a mass of about 4 million times that of our sun. This black hole pulls in surrounding stars and gas, creating a dense region of matter at the center of the galaxy.

What is the Great Attractor?

The Great Attractor is a gravitational anomaly located beyond the Milky Way galaxy. It is approximately 250 million light years away and is pulling our galaxy and many others towards it.

How does the Great Attractor affect our galaxy?

The Great Attractor's strong gravitational pull affects the movement of our galaxy and other nearby galaxies. It is believed to be responsible for the motion of our galaxy towards the constellation Centaurus.

What is the significance of studying the center of the galaxy and the Great Attractor?

Studying the center of the galaxy and the Great Attractor can give us a better understanding of the formation and evolution of galaxies. It also allows us to study the properties of supermassive black holes and the effects of strong gravitational forces on galaxies.

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