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A Geometric Determination of the Distance to the Galactic Center*
F. Eisenhauer,R. Schödel,R. Genzel,T. Ott,M. Tecza,R. Abuter,A. Eckart, andT. Alexander
Published 2003 October 24 • © 2003. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved. Printed in U.S.A.
The Astrophysical Journal,Volume 597,Number 2Citation F. Eisenhaueret al 2003ApJ597 L121DOI 10.1086/380188
F. Eisenhauer
AFFILIATIONS
Max-Planck-Institut für extraterrestrische Physik (MPE), Giessenbachstrasse Postfach 1312, D-85741 Garching, Germany
R. Schödel
AFFILIATIONS
Max-Planck-Institut für extraterrestrische Physik (MPE), Giessenbachstrasse Postfach 1312, D-85741 Garching, Germany
R. Genzel
AFFILIATIONS
Max-Planck-Institut für extraterrestrische Physik (MPE), Giessenbachstrasse Postfach 1312, D-85741 Garching, Germany
Also at Department of Physics, University of California at Berkeley, 366 LeConte Hall, Berkeley, CA 94720-7300
T. Ott
AFFILIATIONS
Max-Planck-Institut für extraterrestrische Physik (MPE), Giessenbachstrasse Postfach 1312, D-85741 Garching, Germany
M. Tecza
AFFILIATIONS
Max-Planck-Institut für extraterrestrische Physik (MPE), Giessenbachstrasse Postfach 1312, D-85741 Garching, Germany
R. Abuter
AFFILIATIONS
Max-Planck-Institut für extraterrestrische Physik (MPE), Giessenbachstrasse Postfach 1312, D-85741 Garching, Germany
A. Eckart
AFFILIATIONS
I. Physikalisches Institut der Universität Köln, Zulpicher Strasse 77, D-50937, Cologne, Germany
T. Alexander
AFFILIATIONS
Faculty of Physics, Weizmann Institute of Science, P.O. Box 26, 76100 Rehovot, Israel
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Dates
- Received2003 May 27
- Accepted2003 September 30
- Published2003 October 24
Abstract
We report new astrometric and spectroscopic observations of the star S2 orbiting the massive black hole in the Galactic center that were taken at the ESO VLT with the adaptive optics-assisted, near-IR camera NAOS/CONICA and the near-IR integral field spectrometer SPIFFI. We use these data to determine all the orbital parameters of the star with high precision, including the Sun-Galactic center distance, which is a key parameter for calibrating stellar standard candles and an important rung in the extragalactic distance ladder. Our deduced value ofR0 = 7.94 ± 0.42 kpc is the most accurate primary distance measurement to the center of the Milky Way and has minimal systematic uncertainties of astrophysical origin. It is in excellent agreement with other recent determinations ofR0.
Footnotes
- *
Based on observations obtained at the Very Large Telescope (VLT) of the European Southern Observatory, Chile.