Scientists close to first sighting of black hole in the Milky Way
Astronomers attempting to capture the first images of the black hole at the heart of the Milky Way have given early hints that the ambitious project has been successful.
The observations, by the Event Horizon Telescope, are expected to be unveiled in the spring in one of the most eagerly awaited scientific announcements of 2019. Now, a senior scientist on the project has said “spectacular” data was gathered during observations of two black holes: Sagittarius A*, at the centre of the Milky Way, and a supermassive black hole called M87 in the Virgo cluster of galaxies.
Prof Peter Galison, who is involved in the project, said that, if successful, the EHT’s first image would become one of the most significant in the past 50 years of astronomy. “It’s an extraordinarily ambitious project, ” he said.
There is little doubt about the existence of black holes. Until now, a black hole has never been directly observed. The main barrier is that black holes are so compact that a telescope roughly the size of Earth would be required to see even the nearest one.
The EHT gets around this by linking together 15-20 telescopes. It uses a technique known as interferometry, in which astronomers on different continents simultaneously observe the same object, then combine the collected data on a supercomputer.
Detailed observations will also be made of dramatic jets of material that are thrown out from some black holes. It is not clear whether Sagittarius A* has jets—it is possible that they are too feeble to have been spotted previously—and the EHT could resolve this question.
1. Sight：/saɪt/，v. 看到，发现
英文释义：- to suddenly see something, especially something you have been looking for
eg. After days at sea, he finally slighted land.
n. 看见：at first sight 第一眼 fall in love at first sight 一见钟情
2. the Milky Way：银河（系）
milky 搭配短语：milky skin
相关词汇：galaxy
同义词：the Milky Way galaxy
英文释义：the galaxy that includes the earth
3. Astronomer: /əˈstrɑːnəmər/,n. 天文学家
词根词缀：astro-（星星）；nomy（学科）
派生词：astronomy 天文学; astronaut 宇航员
4. attempt to do sth: 尝试做某事
5. Observation: 观察(n) observe: 观察(v)
Observatory：天文台、气象台(n)
6. Spectacular：(adj)壮丽的、雄伟的、非凡的
a spectacularview； spectacular success
(n)大型刺激事件或表演: a television spectacular
7. Sagittarius/ˌsædʒɪˈteriəs/，n. 人马座，射手座
8. supermassive/ˈsuːpərˈmæsɪv/，adj. 特大质量的，超大质量的
e.g. A supermassive black hole (SMBH) 超大黑洞
9. Virgo cluster (of galaxies)，室女座星系团
e.g.：Virgo（n. 处女座）
10. cluster（n. 丛；群；团） 搭配短语：a cluster of fans 粉丝团
11. There is little doubt about sth: 某事是毫无疑问的
12. Barrier：障碍= obstacle 困难、障碍
13. compact/ˈkɑːmpækt/，adj. 紧凑的，密实的
e.g. compact soil 紧实的土壤 a compact kitchen 密实的厨房
14. roughly：大约地 rough：大概的
15. get around：应对；逃避= avoid
英文释义：to find a way of dealing with a problem or of avoiding it
例句：There are ways of getting around the rules.
16. Interferometry：/ˌintəfəˈrɔmitri/，n. 干涉测量术
17. simultaneously/ˌsaɪmlˈteɪniəsli/，adv. 同时地
词性拓展：simultaneous (adj.) 搭配短语：simultaneous translation
18. Dramatic = large amount of 大量的
19. jet/dʒet/，n.（水、气等的）喷射流，喷流，(引申)喷气飞机
-a thin stream of something, such as water or gas, that is forced out of a small hole
jet lag: 时差be in get lag: 在倒时差
20. feeble/ˈfiːbl/，adj. 虚弱的；微弱的
搭配短语：a feeble old man 搭配短语：a feeble light
