Unveiling the first-ever image of a black hole [video] • Hacker News Board

Re: Unveiling the first-ever image of a black hole [video]

#41

Post by hliyan » Wed, Apr 10, 2019, 1:32 PM UTC

piker wrote: post #30

Higher resolution official release seems to be: https://www.nsf.gov/news/special_reports/blackholes/download...

The additional pixel density probably doesn't add any details though. The original image looks like a smoothed-out version of a low-res image anyway...

Re: Unveiling the first-ever image of a black hole [video]

#42

Post by nukeop » Wed, Apr 10, 2019, 1:33 PM UTC

acl777 wrote: post #17

There are people that can't believe the Earth is round... I can't imagine what "alternative explanation" will be made to explain a black hole...

There is still zero evidence that there exists such a thing as a black hole with all its fantastic properties. We have a picture of a red-yellow accretion disk and that's it. Black holes remain a mathematical artifact of general relativity and there is as much evidence of their existence as of crystal healing and astral travel. There is at best some evidence of very massive objects at certain points.

Re: Unveiling the first-ever image of a black hole [video]

#43

Post by jessriedel » Wed, Apr 10, 2019, 1:33 PM UTC

zeristor wrote: post #33

I wonder how it compares to the one from Interstellar? https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn26966-interstellars-t...

This blog post describes the stuff Interstellar mostly gets right, and the big thing it's lacking (a brightness asymmetry from the rotation of the accretion disk).

http://blogs.nature.com/aviewfromthebridge/2017/03/28/imagin...

Re: Unveiling the first-ever image of a black hole [video]

#44

Post by [deleted] » Wed, Apr 10, 2019, 1:33 PM UTC

gigatexal wrote: post #29

Any word if Einstein's predictions are correct or refuted? There was word that if the shadow looked a certain way it could mean that relativity is incomplete.

[deleted]

Re: Unveiling the first-ever image of a black hole [video]

#45

Post by zeristor » Wed, Apr 10, 2019, 1:34 PM UTC

How big a VLBI baseline would they need to see much more detail? Are there any plans for a space based VLBI; not easy when you consider the utterly huge amounts of information they have to transfer, a radio telescope in a L5 would be a start.

Also I'd be interested to read how they got around scintallation of the Interstellar Medium.

Re: Unveiling the first-ever image of a black hole [video]

#46

Post by ckugblenu » Wed, Apr 10, 2019, 1:34 PM UTC

The EU is finally learning from the US when it comes making a lot of fanfare for discoveries and other inventions.

Re: Unveiling the first-ever image of a black hole [video]

#47

Post by [deleted] » Wed, Apr 10, 2019, 1:34 PM UTC

[deleted]

Re: Unveiling the first-ever image of a black hole [video]

#48

Post by malikNF » Wed, Apr 10, 2019, 1:35 PM UTC

The reveal happens at -27:06

Re: Unveiling the first-ever image of a black hole [video]

#49

Post by thanatropism » Wed, Apr 10, 2019, 1:35 PM UTC

hrdwdmrbl wrote: post #32

piker wrote: post #30

Higher resolution official release seems to be: https://www.nsf.gov/news/special_reports/blackholes/download...

Does that image have a weird pulsing optical illusion for anyone else?

It's the color scheme. I think in matplotlib it's called "hot". I do a lot of 2D kernel density plots that by having a black zero level and dozens of contour levels produce a smooth look with aesthetics similarities to this. I used to use that scheme because "heatmaps" but stopped because of the pulsing illusion.

I'm not sure if this image is real color or just lightness value and they used a color scheme for drama.

Re: Unveiling the first-ever image of a black hole [video]

#50

Post by asdfasdfasdfa » Wed, Apr 10, 2019, 1:36 PM UTC

piker wrote: post #30

Higher resolution official release seems to be: https://www.nsf.gov/news/special_reports/blackholes/download...

"High res"