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The power of new experimental techniques in astronomy: zooming in on the black hole in the Center of the Milky Way

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 August 2006

Reinhard Genzel
Reinhard Genzel*
Affiliation:
Max-Planck Institut für extraterrestrische Physik (MPE), Garching, FRG and Department of Physics, University of California, Berkeley, USA email: [email protected]
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Abstract

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It is becoming ever easier to obtain first class astronomical data by working solely from one's computer terminal, the modern equivalent of the armchair. This wonderful development may tempt us to forget that astronomical discoveries and findings are first and foremost driven by hard-won progress in observational and experimental capabilities. The present article is meant to demonstrate this assertion by reviewing recent developments and future possibilities in studying the Center of the Milky Way, our best case for the existence of a (massive) black hole and a superb laboratory for studying the physical processes in the immediate vicinity of such an enigmatic object.

Keywords

Galaxy: centerinfrared: starsstars: individual (Sgr A*)
Type
Contributed Papers
Information
Proceedings of the International Astronomical Union , Volume 2 , Highlights of Astronomy 14: Highlights of Astronomy , August 2006 , pp. 63 - 76
Copyright
Copyright © International Astronomical Union 2007

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