SO-2 Star in 2018 (IMAGE)
Caption
A star known as S0-2 (the blue and green object in this artist's rendering) made its closest approach to the supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way in 2018. Andrea Ghez's research team conducted the most comprehensive test ever of Albert Einstein's theory of general relativity near this enormous black hole. Einstein's theory of general relativity is the best description of how gravity works. Ghez and her team collected data at the W.M. Keck Observatory in Hawaii.
Credit
Nicolle R. Fuller/National Science Foundation
Usage Restrictions
None
License
Licensed content