Issue |
A&A
Volume 409, Number 3, October III 2003
|
|
---|---|---|
Page(s) | 809 - 812 | |
Section | Astrophysical processes | |
DOI | https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361:20031137 | |
Published online | 17 November 2003 |
The black hole at the galactic center as a possible retro-lens for the S2 orbiting star
1
Dipartimento di Fisica, Università di Lecce, and , Sezione di Lecce, CP 193, 73100 Lecce, Italy
2
International Center for Relativistic Astrophysics – I.C.R.A., University of Rome “La Sapienza”, 00185 Rome, Italy
Corresponding author: F. De Paolis, depaolis@le.infn.it
Received:
6
June
2003
Accepted:
23
July
2003
Holz & Wheeler (2002) have recently proposed that
a Schwarzschild black hole may act as a retro-lens which, if
illuminated by a powerful light source, deflects light ray paths
to large bending angles and a series of luminous arcs (or rings in
the case of aligned objects) centered on the black hole may form.
Obviously, the most convenient geometry to get retro-lensing
images would be that of a very bright star close to a massive
black hole, say the putative black
hole at the galactic center. Recent observations of the galactic
center region in the K-band have revealed the presence of a very
bright main sequence star (labelled S2) with mass
orbiting at close distance (130-1900 AU) from Sgr A*. The relatively vicinity of S2 to the central massive black
hole may offer a unique laboratory to test the formation of
retro-lensing images. The next generation of space-based
telescopes in the K-band (like NGST) may have high enough
limiting magnitude necessary to observe such retro-lensing images.
Key words: gravitation / gravitational lensing
© ESO, 2003
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