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National Radio Astronomy Observatory | NSF NRAO
@TheNRAO
The NSF National Radio Astronomy Observatory is a facility of the U.S. National Science Foundation. #RadioAstronomy πŸ“‘ VLA, ALMA, VLBA, GBT, ngVLA
NM, VA, and WV
Joined October 2008
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    We want to bring even more students to the Very Large Array in 2026 - and YOU can help us make that possible! πŸšŒπŸ“‘ When you join the VLA Membership Program, you support K-12 #STEM initiatives like field trips - for as low as $25/year! Join today: public.nrao.edu/join
    Promotional graphic for the VLA Membership Program with text that says Join Today! The graphic features a background image of the VLA telescopes and a bordered cutout of a girl wearing a Very Large Array Member t-shirt and hat.
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    Radio Image of the Week πŸ“‘ This cool image shows the coldest known spot in space! This is the Boomerang Nebula, and it has a temperature of just 1 Kelvin πŸ₯Ά Cold gas doesn't emit much light, but the sensitive detectors of @almaobs have captured its faint radio glow...(1/2)
    Double lobes of faint purple radio light emit from a central point, surrounded by an orange shape (like a capital A) of cold molecular gas. The background is a dark section of starry space.
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    Black Hole Debuts in M87! First-ever image of the event horizon of a black hole, captured by the @ehtelescope project. #EHTBlackHole #RealBlackHole
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    Replying to @TheNRAO
    Wow thanks gamers! Anyone interested in learning more about this lil guy should check out the original press release: public.nrao.edu/news/alma-reve… and I will take any non-sus questions you may have :)
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    Simulation of @almaobs data from protocluster SPT2349-56 depicting the extraordinary chaotic merger of 14 galaxies in the early and distant universe. Credit: University of Victoria in BC; Compute Canada supercomputer; Flatiron Institute (Hayward). public.nrao.edu/news/2018-alma…
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    Replying to @TheNRAO
    Yeah....had to shut off replies; it's not personal! There's only one of me! You can still @ any time :)
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    Replying to @TheNRAO
    (2/2)...shown here in orange against an optical image background. Credit: Bill Saxton (NRAO / @discoverAUI / @NSF); @NASA / @HubbleTelescope ; Raghvendra Sahai
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    Curious about #OurBlackHole? Get the scoop on our galactic neighbor and the team that made this image possible! Sgr A* sits at the center of the Milky Wayβ€”that's our galaxyβ€”about 27,000 light years from Earth. Credit: B. Saxton (NRAO/AUI/NSF)
    A graphic representing the size of Sgr A* that reads: This is the first image of our neighborhood black hole in the center of the Milky Way galaxy. The right around the black hole is captured light bent by the powerful gravity of the black hole.

Under the heading "distance", a graphic shows that Sgr A* is 27,000 light years from Earth.

Credit: NRAO/AUI/NSF
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    Replying to @TheNRAO
    This is the very first simulated image of a black hole, calculated using a 1960s punch card IBM 7040 computer and plotted by hand by French astrophysicist Jean-Pierre Luminet in 1978. #BlackHoleWeek sciencealert.com/this-new-nasa-…
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    A tour of the outer Solar System in radio light. Happy #NationalRadioDay πŸ“‘πŸ“»γ€°οΈ
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    It's here: the first image of the supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way ⚫ This is the first image of Sagittarius A* (or Sgr A* for short), making it the first direct visual evidence of the presence of this black hole. #OurBlackHole! Credit: #EHT Collaboration
    This is the first image of Sgr A* (pronounced "Sadge-A Star"), the supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way. On a dark field sits a fuzzy, round orange disk with dark center, the shadow of the black hole. There are 3 brighter spots on the body of the disk, and some darker more diffuse areas of light around its periphery.
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    movable reconfigurable adaptable receivable noncallable alienable #VeryLargeArray
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    There's more than one way a star can explode. @chandraxray has found a new supernova remnant from an exploding white dwarf star. Data from the Very Large Array in red. chandra.harvard.edu/blog/node/780