Unveiling the Mystery of the Milky Way's Supermassive Black Hole's Companion

A new study examines whether the supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way, known as Sagittarius A*, has a companion. While most galaxies contain a supermassive black hole, it is unclear if our galaxy has a companion black hole. The study analyzes the orbit of a star called S0-2, which orbits Sag A* closely, and finds no evidence of gravitational perturbations that would suggest the presence of an intermediate mass black hole (IMBH) companion. The study puts upper bounds on the mass of a hypothetical IMBH, suggesting that if it exists, it could have a mass no greater than 1,000 to 10,000 Suns if it orbits outside S0-2's orbit, or no greater than 400 Suns if it orbits closer than S0-2. However, the study acknowledges that smaller IMBH companions may still exist beyond our current detection capabilities.