Slashdot Mirror
Stars Form Near Milky Way's Supermassive Black Hole
New submitter Aspiring Astronomer writes: Scientists report that stars have likely formed near the supermassive black hole in the heart of our galaxy. How does this happen, if a black hole exerts so much gravitational force that not even light can escape? Astronomers believe the black hole may actually facilitate the formation of these stars. According to study author Farhad Yusef-Zadeh, the gases and dusts constantly flowing toward black holes compress and heat up, creating enough disturbance to cause the materials to collapse and then form a star. Yusef-Zadeh speculates that in addition to stars forming near black holes, planets may form there, too. The disk around a protostar (a mass of gas and materials that form early in star formation) breaks off into clumps of matter, and when paired with the extreme force of a black hole, may cause the formation whole planets.
"How does this happen, if a black hole exerts so much gravitational force that not even light can escape?"
The stars don't form inside the black hole, so I don't see how that is related. Instead they are at a distance of several light years, where some of the gas that falls towards the center stops (angular momentum; similar gravitational attraction of black hole and galaxy stars). The gas can collapse and form stars. These are called "nuclear star clusters".
NB: The message above might reflect my opinion right now, but not necessarily tomorrow or next year.
What an interesting theory! I have very limited knowledge of space and black holes, as this was my first submission (and it made the front page - whoohoo!), and I am still in high school. I do, however, plan to continue studying astronomy throughout high school and eventually in college. So, plan on seeing more submissions from me as my knowledge grows! :)