TED: The hunt for a supermassive black hole | Andrea Ghez

The video explores the concept of black holes, focusing on supermassive black holes at the center of galaxies. It explains their characteristics, such as mass and the Schwarzschild radius, and discusses the methods used to observe them, including the use of the Keck Observatory. The video presents evidence for the existence of supermassive black holes and highlights the challenges and future directions in black hole research.

What makes black holes difficult to observe directly?

• They are too small to detect.

• They do not emit light.

• Their gravitational pull is weak.

• They emit too much light.

What is the Schwarzschild radius?

• A virtual radius indicating when an object becomes a black hole.

• The radius of the sun.

• The distance from the black hole where light can escape.

• The actual size of a black hole.

What is the primary characteristic used to describe a black hole?

• Volume

• Color

• Temperature

• Mass

Where are supermassive black holes typically found?

• At the center of galaxies

• In the outer regions of galaxies

• In the middle of star clusters

• In the voids between galaxies

What is an active galactic nucleus?

• The center of a galaxy with unusual energetic phenomena

• A black hole that emits no light

• A type of galaxy with no stars

• A region in a galaxy with intense star formation

How do astronomers prove the presence of a supermassive black hole?

• By measuring the temperature of the galaxy

• By detecting radio waves from the black hole

• By observing the orbits of stars around the black hole

• By counting the number of stars in the galaxy

What is the role of adaptive optics in astronomy?

• To increase the size of telescopes

• To measure the temperature of stars

• To correct atmospheric distortions for clearer images

• To detect radio signals from space

What unexpected observation was made about stars near the center of the Galaxy?

• Stars are moving away from the center.

• Young stars are more abundant than expected.

• There are no stars near the center.

• Old stars are more abundant than young stars.

What future technology is hoped to improve the study of supermassive black holes?

• Infrared cameras

• Radio telescopes

• 30 meter telescopes

• Smaller telescopes

What is one of the main goals of future research on supermassive black holes?

• To measure the temperature of black holes

• To prove they do not exist

• To understand their role in galaxy formation

• To find black holes in the solar system