The Galactic Supermassive Black Hole

By: Fulvio Melia

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Paperback | 19 June 2007

At a Glance

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344 Pages

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23.4 x 15.2 x 1.91

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Here, one of the world's leading astrophysicists provides the first comprehensive and logically structured overview of the many ideas and discoveries pertaining to the supermassive black hole at the galactic center known as Sagittarius A*. By far the closest galactic nucleus in the universe, Sagittarius A* alone can provide us with a realistic expectation of learning about the physics of strong gravitational fields, and the impact of such fields on the behavior of matter and radiation under severe physical conditions. Its proximity may even provide the opportunity to directly test one of general relativity's most enigmatic predictions--the existence of closed pockets of space-time hidden behind an event horizon.

The plethora of research on Sagittarius A* since its discovery in 1974 has long seemed an interwoven pattern of loose threads. No one has successfully synthesized this growing body of work into a manageable, coherent book both for professional researchers and for students taking courses focusing on black holes and galactic nuclei--until now. With Fulvio Melia's The Galactic Supermassive Black Hole, readers finally have at their disposal a one-volume crucible of essential ideas, logically streamlined but with thorough references for those wishing to explore the various topics in greater depth.

Industry Reviews

"Combining large scale astronomical observations with the careful reasoning of physics leads to the widely encompassing field of astrophysics. Apparently, the physical laws that rule interactions on Earth also rule the actions across our university. Fulvio Melia takes this consideration to task in his book The Galactic Supermassive Black Hole. Within the book, the equations bring reason to some very murky observations and sharpen our view of the heavens."--Universe Today "Melia has prepared his book as a logically arranged and comprehensive compilation of our current knowledge...For those who wish to become familiar with the current thinking, this is the book to read; it is the only complete overview of the subject."--A. Spero, Choice

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Foreword	p. vii
Preface	p. xiii
The Galactic Center	p. 1
Discovery of Sagittarius A*	p. 2
Radio Morphology of the Central Region	p. 5
X-ray Morphology of the Central Region	p. 10
Sagittarius A East	p. 17
The Radio Source Sagittarius A*	p. 25
Position of Sagittarius A*	p. 27
Proper Motion	p. 32
Structure as a Function of Frequency	p. 37
Sagittarius A*'s Spectrum	p. 42
The Radio Spectrum	p. 42
Linear and Circular Polarization	p. 46
Infrared Observations	p. 55
X-ray Observations	p. 58
Observed High-Energy Characteristics	p. 65
Variability	p. 71
Short-Term Variability in the IR and X-rays	p. 71
Long-Term Variability in the Radio	p. 81
The Central Star Cluster	p. 86
The Stellar Cusp Surrounding the Black Hole	p. 87
Stellar Constituents and Dynamics	p. 101
Stellar Orbits and the Enclosed Mass	p. 109
The Four-Dimensional Spacetime	p. 114
The Flat Spacetime Metric	p. 114
Relativistic Transformation of Physical Laws	p. 126
Accelerated Frames	p. 132
General Relativity	p. 137
Particle Orbits and Trajectories	p. 140
The Kerr Metric	p. 149
Mass Accretion and Expulsion	p. 156
Sagittarius A*'s Gaseous Environment	p. 158
Bondi-Hoyle Capture from Distributed Sources	p. 162
Accretion Close to Sagittarius A*	p. 165
Magnetic Field Dissipation	p. 167
A Compact Magnetized Disk	p. 176
Expulsion of Matter	p. 204
Flares	p. 226
Flare Physics	p. 226
Periodicity	p. 234
General Relativistic Flux Modulations	p. 240
Strong Field Physics	p. 245
Spin-Induced Disk Precession	p. 246
Microlensing	p. 251
Imaging the Shadow of the Black Hole	p. 259
References	p. 265
Index	p. 287
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.

The Galactic Supermassive Black Hole

At a Glance

Paperback

Industry Reviews

Shipping

How to return your order

Defective items

You Can Find This Book In

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