| Some authors claim that an alignment between the Earth, the Sun, and the black hole in the center of the Milky Way will occur on 12/21/2012. We show why this is impossible, but also discuss why it wouldn't be a problem if it did. |
Claims
Some proponents claim that there will be an eclipse of the central black hole of our milky way galaxy on 12/21/2012, and that this will cause some dangerous effects on earth. We have seen claims of earthquakes, tsunamis, pole shifts and the like. Below are some of the claims found on the internet regarding black holes in 2012:
Black hole collisions in 2012 may create massive gravity radiation creating imbalance in our entire galaxy
India Daily Technology Team
Jun. 21, 2006Scientists are worried about possible many Black hole collisions in and around the year of 2012. All galaxies are believed to contain supermassive black holes at their centers. Galaxies grow by merging with other galaxies, and when this occurs, the central black holes form a binary system and revolve around each other, eventually coalescing into one. The coalescence is driven by the emission of gravitational radiation. It follows the cysles of chilled universe below the Hyperspace – the cycle of creation, maintenance and eventual destruction.
According to some proponents, black holes are headed for collisions in and around the year of 2012. This can eject massive gravity radiation creating imbalance in our entire galaxy if not the whole universe. Black holes can also get ejected out of a galaxy and head towards another galaxy.[1]
Impossible alignment
As we discuss in the Solstice Alignment page, a perfect alignment with the center of the galaxy is not possible. In the case of the black hole, this is even more significant since the claims of a perfect alignment are central to the various claims made about this event. The point in the sky at which the galactic latitude and longitude are both zero is 17h 45m 37.224s −28° 56′ 10.23″ (J2000). This is offset slightly from the radio source Sagittarius A*, which is the best physical marker of the true galactic center. Sagittarius A* is located at 17h 45m 40.04s −29° 00′ 28.1″ (J2000), or galactic longitude 359° 56′ 39.5″, galactic latitude −0° 2′ 46.3″. On 12/21/2012 at 11:11 UT, the sun will be centered on 18h 00m 00s -23° 26′ 09″. Therefore, the sun will not occlude the galactic black hole.
Gravity
The most frequently cited force for causing problems during an alignment with the galaxy's central black hole is gravity. The gravity well of a black hole is indeed very steep… if you are close to the black hole. If you are far away (and we're 26,000 ±1,400 light years away) then the gravity well is not steep, and the gravity of the black hole is no different than the gravity of a similar mass object at the same distance. If the sun were to be replaced with a $1M_\odot$ (that is, 1 Solar Mass) black hole, we would not notice the difference as far as gravity. It would be the same force, and the orbit of the earth would not change.[3]
If I say "There is a 4-million $M_\odot$ black hole in the center of the galaxy!" it sounds a lot scarier than "There are 4 million $M_\odot$ stars in the center of the galaxy!".
The formula for gravity (Newtons law of universal gravitation) is:
(1)where $m1$ and $m2$ are the masses of the two objects and $d$ is the distance between the centers of mass of the objects, and $G$ is the gravitational constant:
(2)Using these formulas we can determine that the force of gravity between the Sun and the Earth is $\approx 3.54 \times 10^{22}$ Newtons (3sf). The gravitational force between Sun and black hole at the center of the Galaxy (assuming that the black hole is 3,000,000 solar masses and 8kpc away) is $\approx 1.30 \times 10^{16}$ Newtons (3sf). The Gravitational force between Earth and Moon is $\approx 1.98 \times 10^{21}$ Newtons (3sf).
In other words, gravitational force between the Earth and Sun is about 1 million times larger than that between the Sun and the black hole at the center of the Galaxy.[5]
Other claimed forces
As you can see from the quotations above, the 2012 proponents do not limit themselves to gravity. They propose other forms of radiation or other forces that will 'bathe the earth' during the 2012 solstice. As is frequently the case, there is a tiny germ of truth in this claim. We are constantly being 'bathed with radiation' from the black hole. We are also constantly being 'bathed with radiation' from the Sun, from the stars, and from distant galaxies. In fact, it is essential to our ability to detect them. If we weren't able to detect the radiation from these objects, we wouldn't be able to see them!
There is nothing unusual about the 2012 solstice as far as radiation received from the galactic center. It will not increase or decrease during this time. We are in fact cut off from visible light from the galactic center (see the Dark Rift page for an explanation), but we can see the galactic center in infrared and x-ray light.
Some proponents make exactly the opposite claim. They say that when the 'sun eclipses the black hole' (which it won't) then we will be cut off from 'life-giving rays from the galactic core'. We challenge them to describe the form of radiation or force that is emanating from the black hole that is not also emanating from other sources (like the Sun), and why any such radiation or force is exempt from the inverse square law.
Conclusion
In conclusion: We have shown that an alignment between the Earth, Sun and the galactic super-massive black hole is impossible. We have also shown that the gravity from the super-massive black hole is 1 millionth the gravity of the Sun.
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