• Key Information

  • Sagittarius A*

  • Type
    Supermassive black hole
  • Diameter
    32.2 million miles
  • Mass
    4 million solar masses
  • Orbit Time
    5.6 days
  • Distance from Earth
    26,673 light years
  • Discovery Date
    1933
  • Learning Point
  • The black hole at the center of our galaxy is known as Sagittarius A* and is the largest black hole in our galaxy. It is the source of huge amounts of X-Rays, and is classed as a supermassive blackhole.
  • Project
  • Draw a picture of the blackhole and the bluegiant star.
  • Location
  • Located in
    Sagittarius constellation
  • Fun Facts
  • Sagittarius A* is thought to be around 4 million suns in size, and bigger than the orbit of Mercury.
  • The massive stars nearby orbit around the black hole and have helped us identify where it is and how big it is.
  • The black hole was observed and a special picture produced to help us understand the basic shape of the accretion disk that is around it.