How to get to M87
June 14, 2020 5:51 AM Subscribe
I'm looking for the specific coordinates of the black hole that was first photographed last year (in M87). Looking to engrave it in my wedding ring.
I'm trying to make the argument that a black hole is the most powerful thing in the universe == like our love.
Haven't convinced my wife to be yet that she wants our marriage to be associated with a black hole. So additional space themes/coordinates to be added to a wedding ring would be appreciated.
I'm trying to make the argument that a black hole is the most powerful thing in the universe == like our love.
Haven't convinced my wife to be yet that she wants our marriage to be associated with a black hole. So additional space themes/coordinates to be added to a wedding ring would be appreciated.
To answer the direct question: astronomers usually talk about the position of an object on the sky in terms of "declination" and "right ascension". These are effectively the analogues of latitude and longitude (respectively) on the celestial sphere; see this diagram if you're having trouble visualizing it.
With that in mind, the right ascension of M87 is 12h 30m 49.42338s, and its declination is +12° 23′ 28.0439″. I believe these celestial coordinates are for the center of the visible galaxy, and I assume that the black hole itself is pretty close to that; but I spent a bit of time looking through the EHT publications from 2019 and couldn't confirm this for sure.
posted by Johnny Assay at 7:25 AM on June 14, 2020 [3 favorites]
With that in mind, the right ascension of M87 is 12h 30m 49.42338s, and its declination is +12° 23′ 28.0439″. I believe these celestial coordinates are for the center of the visible galaxy, and I assume that the black hole itself is pretty close to that; but I spent a bit of time looking through the EHT publications from 2019 and couldn't confirm this for sure.
posted by Johnny Assay at 7:25 AM on June 14, 2020 [3 favorites]
Why not go with your favorite binary star like antares in Scorpio or acrux in the southern cross?
If, on the contrary, two stars should really be situated very near each other, and at the same time so far insulated as not to be materially affected by the attractions of neighbouring stars, they will then compose a separate system, and remain united by the bond of their own mutual gravitation towards each other.
That sounds romantic to me.
posted by chasles at 12:35 PM on June 14, 2020 [1 favorite]
If, on the contrary, two stars should really be situated very near each other, and at the same time so far insulated as not to be materially affected by the attractions of neighbouring stars, they will then compose a separate system, and remain united by the bond of their own mutual gravitation towards each other.
That sounds romantic to me.
posted by chasles at 12:35 PM on June 14, 2020 [1 favorite]
.... Not that that's actually what you asked. i would use right ascension for the locator.
posted by chasles at 12:37 PM on June 14, 2020
posted by chasles at 12:37 PM on June 14, 2020
It's not M87, but how about Sagittarius A*, another super-massive black hole that is at the center of our galaxy? RA and Dec are in the Wikipedia link.
posted by Rob Rockets at 12:54 PM on June 14, 2020
posted by Rob Rockets at 12:54 PM on June 14, 2020
Response by poster: So just to get this right 12h 30m 49.42338s refers to the rotation of earth at a certain moment within 24 hours in a standardized position and the declination +12° 23′ 28.0439″ would be "like the latitude"?
So it would be written out as
"12h 30m 49.42338s +12° 23′ 28.0439"
or: "alpha (α) 12h 30m 49.42338s +12° 23′ 28.0439"
posted by mathiu at 1:19 PM on June 14, 2020
So it would be written out as
"12h 30m 49.42338s +12° 23′ 28.0439"
or: "alpha (α) 12h 30m 49.42338s +12° 23′ 28.0439"
posted by mathiu at 1:19 PM on June 14, 2020
Have you considered the coordinates of the Great Attractor?
posted by It's Never Lurgi at 9:24 PM on June 14, 2020
posted by It's Never Lurgi at 9:24 PM on June 14, 2020
I wish you long lives full of happiness but I'd be terrified of someone citing the long reach and slow accumulation of gravity as a metaphor for their side of a relationship with me. I Nth you conider a binary star system as suggested by chasles.
Gravity's the weakest atomic force but it has time on its side; it's been pulling matter together since the Big Bang in a way that's inescapable -- which pushes my buttons because no civilised human relationship is inescapable. And that's before we talk about crossing the event horizon of a black hole which says that time slows down to the point where you wouldn't know you've been separated from the rest of the cosmos and swallowed by the singularity. You might have a timeless love, be everything to each other and only want an eternity of endless days together (and may your experience be all these good things) but expect people who know cosmology to smirk and snark about your choice!
posted by k3ninho at 4:59 AM on June 15, 2020 [1 favorite]
Gravity's the weakest atomic force but it has time on its side; it's been pulling matter together since the Big Bang in a way that's inescapable -- which pushes my buttons because no civilised human relationship is inescapable. And that's before we talk about crossing the event horizon of a black hole which says that time slows down to the point where you wouldn't know you've been separated from the rest of the cosmos and swallowed by the singularity. You might have a timeless love, be everything to each other and only want an eternity of endless days together (and may your experience be all these good things) but expect people who know cosmology to smirk and snark about your choice!
posted by k3ninho at 4:59 AM on June 15, 2020 [1 favorite]
Yeah, I can see why your partner might not be convinced that something known for being completely crushing and utterly inescapable is the right metaphor for your relationship.
Personally I like the idea of a binary star better as a metaphor. Or something related to Pluto, which is actually a double-planet with its moon Charon ( i.e. they both orbit around eachother).
posted by firechicago at 7:49 AM on June 15, 2020
Personally I like the idea of a binary star better as a metaphor. Or something related to Pluto, which is actually a double-planet with its moon Charon ( i.e. they both orbit around eachother).
posted by firechicago at 7:49 AM on June 15, 2020
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