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VERSION:2.0
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PRODID:UW-Madison-Physics-Events
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SEQUENCE:0
UID:UW-Physics-Event-1819
DTSTART:20100323T203000Z
DURATION:PT1H0M0S
DTSTAMP:20260506T161551Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20100319T131942Z
LOCATION:3425 Sterling Hall
SUMMARY:Bringing our Galaxy's Supermassive Black Hole and Environs int
 o Focus with Laser Guide Star Adaptive Optics\, Astronomy Colloquium\,
  Andrea Ghez\, UCLA
DESCRIPTION:The proximity of our Galaxy's center presents a unique opp
 ortunity to study a galactic nucleus with orders of magnitude higher s
 patial resolution than can be brought to bear on any other galaxy. Aft
 er more than a decade of astrometry from diffraction-limited speckle i
 maging on large ground-based telescopes\, the case for a supermassive 
 black hole at the Galactic center has gone from a possibility to a cer
 tainty\, thanks to measurements of individual stellar orbits. The adve
 nt of adaptive optics technology has significantly expanded the scient
 ific reach of our high-spatial-resolution infrared studies of the Gala
 ctic center. In this talk\, I will present the results of several new 
 adaptive optics studies on (1) our current understanding of the galaxy
 's central gravitational potential\, (2) the puzzling problem of how y
 oung stars form in the immediate vicinity of the central black hole\, 
 (3) the surprising\, apparent absence of the predicted central stellar
  cusp around the central supermassive black hole (an essential input i
 nto models for the growth of nuclear black holes)\, and (4) how future
  large ground-based telescope may allow these studies to test general 
 relativity and cosmological models. <br>
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URL:https://www.physics.wisc.edu/events/?id=1819
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