Map of the Universe

Gaia BH2

Black hole · Binary system in Centaurus

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Gaia BH2
Picture: Legacy Surveys / D.Lang (Perimeter Institute) & Meli thev, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

About Gaia BH2

Gaia BH2 is about 3,783 light-years from the Sun, so the light we see from it left about 3,783 years ago.

It is 24,716 light-years from the centre of the Milky Way.

The map lists it as a black hole and shows it among the stars around the Sun, drawn on the plane of the Milky Way.

Key numbers

Distance3,783 light-years (1,160 pc)
Distance from the Galactic centre24,716 light-years
Galactic coordinatesl = 310.40°, b = +2.80°

Where it is

Its place in the universe, from the inside out: Milky Way › Local Group › Virgo Supercluster › Laniakea Supercluster › Observable universe.

Zoom out to see it in context: Local Arm, a view about 12,000 light-years across.

From Wikipedia

Gaia BH2 is a binary system consisting of a red giant and a stellar-mass black hole. Gaia BH2 is located about 3,800 light years away in the constellation of Centaurus, making it as of 2024 the third-closest known black hole system to Earth. Gaia BH2 is the second black hole discovered from Gaia DR3 astrometric data.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Gaia BH2, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

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