1998 SPACE SCIENCE VIDEOTAPES |
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Tape Title | Record ID | Date Produced | TRT: |
Synopsis |
| RXTE "OLD FAITHFUL" BLACK HOLE | G98-001 | 1/08/98 | 00:05:30 | Compelling new animation shows a black hole in our galaxy that is hurling away a mass equivalent to a 100 trillion ton asteroid every half hour. The black hole, which is orbiting a close "companion" star, pulls gas from the surface of the star. This gas forms a disk around the black hole. (acretion disk) On approximately half-hour intervals, a disruption occurs and the material is ejected in oppositely directed jets at nearly the speed of light (about 650 million mph), and the cycle repeats itself.
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TAPE CONTENTS: |
| ITEM (1 ): "OLD FAITHFUL" BLACK HOLE ANIMATION (2 versions) - Compelling new animation shows a black hole in our galaxy that is hurling away a mass equivalent to a 100 trillion ton asteroid every half hour. The black hole, which is orbiting a close "companion" star, pulls gas from the surface of the star. This gas forms a disk around the black hole. On approximately half hour intervals, a disruption is transmitted through the disk, the material is ejected in oppositely directed jets at nearly the speed of light (about 650 million miles per hour), and the cycle repeats itself. The energy involved in each ejection is about six trillion times greater than the annual energy consumption of the entire United States.
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| ITEM (2): NASA'S ROSSI X-RAY TIMING EXPLORER ANIMATION - NASA's Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer (RXTE) was used to obtain the results illustrated in the animation.
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| ITEM (3): INTERVIEW - DR. CRAIG MARKWARDT, ASTRONOMER, NAVAL RESEARCH CENTER
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| ITEM (4): INTERVIEW - DR. JEAN SWANK, PROJECT SCIENTIST, ROSSI X-RAY TIMING EXPLORER (RXTE), GSFC
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