Free Astronomy Magazine January-February 2023

JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2023 A stronomers using the International Gemini Observatory, operated by NSF’s NOIRLab, have discovered the closest-known black hole to Earth. This is the first unambiguous detection of a dormant stellar-mass black hole in the Milky Way. Its close proximity to Earth, a mere 1600 light-years away, offers an intriguing target of study to advance our understanding of the evolution of binary systems. [International Gem- ini Observatory/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA/J. da Silva/Spaceengine/M. Zamani]