Leaders Driving Change at SXSW part 2 “Photographing a Black Hole” Podcast with Dimitrios Psaltis

PHOTOGRAPHING A BLACK HOLE

Black holes do not let light escape, according to University of Arizona professor Dimitrios Psaltis, so how does a camera get a photo of one? This is the challenge for Psaltis and the team at Event Horizon Telescope (EHT), a project designed to create an Earth-sized telescope network that can capture images of black holes.

“Most of the time what we do in science, is as you said, is taking a tiny little step that is completely inconsequential,” Psaltis said. “And yet, once every generation, once every two generations we are lucky enough to be in front of something major like taking a picture of a black hole. To me at least, that is not something that happens all the time.”

Psaltis spoke over the weekend about the progress EHT has made since it launched in 2017 and how this endeavor will give people a better understanding of Albert Einstein’s theory of general relativity. Images and findings from the project are expected to be revealed later this year.