Café & Kosmos: At the heart of our Milky Way

Astronomers need to be patient: Dr. Stefan Gillessen will explain at the next Café & Kosmos how astrophysicists at the Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics found a super massive Black Hole at the centre of our galaxy – with the help of 16 years of data. This Black Hole is four million times more massive than our Sun, but it doesn’t shine…

During a clear night, you can easily see the star-spangled band of the Milky Way. Its very centre, however, is hidden behind dense gas and dust clouds. Astronomers use modern infrared cameras to penetrate this veil and to observe the stars at the galactic centre. Just as the planets orbit the Sun, these stars orbit an invisible object. Why does this have to be a Black Hole? Why do we think, that all galaxies harbour such gravity monsters? Come to Café & Kosmos to find out!

The Café & Kosmos event series in Munich is organised jointly by the Exzellenzcluster Universe and the Max-Planck-Institutes for Physics, Astrophysics, and Extraterrestrial Physics. The event takes place every first Monday of the month in the Café Jasmin in Munich: After a short introduction, the audience can ask questions about current topics "from the cosmos".

What: Café & Kosmos – „At the heart of our Milky Way“

When: 8. November 2010, 19:00 (until approx. 20:30)

Where: Café Jasmin, Steinheilstrasse 20 (U2, Theresienstraße)

Entrance free.

Please note that the event will be conducted in German.