Milky Way's Black Hole Reveals Mysterious Space Tunnel Formation

WHO:

Space Daily - The research team was led by Northwestern astrophysicists Mark D. Gorski and Lena Murchikova.

Space Daily - The team is part of Northwestern’s Center for Interdisciplinary Exploration and Research in Astrophysics.

WHAT:

Space Daily - Astronomers have found evidence of a wind blowing from Sagittarius A*, the Milky Way’s central black hole.

Space Daily - The wind is described as a cone-shaped cavity carved into the cold gas surrounding Sagittarius A*.

Space Daily - The outflow has been blowing for at least 20,000 years.

Space Daily - The cone-shaped gap stretches nearly one parsec (about three light-years) with an opening angle of about 45 degrees.

WHERE:

Space Daily - The observations were conducted using the Atacama Large Millimeter/Submillimeter Array in Chile.

Space Daily - The study focuses on the region around Sagittarius A*, located at the center of the Milky Way galaxy.

WHEN:

Space Daily - The research was published on June 4 in The Astrophysical Journal Letters.

Space Daily - The observations were gathered between 2017 and 2021.

WHY:

Space Daily - The detection of the wind is significant because it suggests that even quiet black holes like Sagittarius A* are venting a steady breeze, which shapes the gas reservoirs of their host galaxies.

HOW:

Space Daily - The team used roughly 100 hours of observations and a new calibration technique that subtracted Sagittarius A*’s own variable radio glow to enhance data sensitivity.

Space Daily - The research involved analyzing cold carbon monoxide as a tracer of molecular gas in the vicinity of the black hole.

(UPDATED June 10, 2026 04:23 UTC)

Astronomers from Northwestern University, led by Mark D. Gorski and Lena Murchikova, have discovered evidence of a wind blowing from Sagittarius A*, the central black hole of the Milky Way. This cone-shaped outflow, which has been active for at least 20,000 years, extends nearly one parsec and has an opening angle of about 45 degrees, suggesting that even quiet black holes are influencing their surrounding gas reservoirs. The findings, published in The Astrophysical Journal Letters, were made possible through approximately 100 hours of observations using the Atacama Large Millimeter/Submillimeter Array in Chile, employing a new calibration technique to enhance data sensitivity.