page_title: Jean-Pierre Luminet
section_title: Scientific activities
hierarchical_section_title: Jean-Pierre Luminet / Scientific activities
caption_attribution_description: العربية: صورة من التعاون ما بين مؤسسة العلوم الوطنية وتلسكوب أفق الحدث التي أفضت إلى رصد تاريخي لثقب أسود فائق الضخامة في قلب مجرة مسييه 87. صورة للثقب الأسود M87* من تلسكوب أفق الحدث عن رصد فلكي أجري بتاريخ 11 أبريل عام 2017، كمثال تمثيلي عن الصور التي تم تجميعها في التعاون عام 2017. الصورة هي متوسط لثلاث طرق تصوير مختلفة ملتفة حول بعضها البعض مع نواة غاوسِيّة مدَوَّرة لإعطاء دقة متَطابِقة. الصورة معروضة في وحدات حرارة السطوع، T b = S &#x03BB; 2 / 2 k B &#x03A9; {\displaystyle {T}_{\rm {b}}=S{\lambda }^{2}/2{k}_{\rm {B}}{\rm {\Omega }}} ، حيث S هي كثافة التدفق، أمَّا λ فهي طول موجة الرصد، k B {\displaystyle {k}_{\rm {B}}} هو ثابت بولتزمان، أمَّا Ω فهو الزاوية الصلبة لعضو الدقة. Deutsch: Die National Science Foundation und das Event Horizon Telescope tragen zu den Paradigmenwechsel des gigantischen Schwarzen Lochs im Herzen der fernen Galaxie Messier 87 bei. English: The Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) — a planet-scale array of eight ground-based radio telescopes forged through international collaboration — was designed to capture images of a black hole. In coordinated press conferences across the globe, EHT researchers revealed that they succeeded, unveiling the first direct visual evidence of the supermassive black hole in the centre of Messier 87 and its shadow.In this image of M87* taken on 11 April 2017 (a representative example of the images collected in a global 2017 EHT campaign), the shadow of a black hole is the closest we can come to an image of the black hole itself, a completely dark object from which light cannot escape. The black hole’s boundary — the event horizon from which the EHT takes its name — is around 2.5 times smaller than the shadow it casts and measures just under 40 billion km across. While this may sound large, this ring is only about 40 microarcseconds across — equivalent to measuring the length of a credit card on the surface of the Moon.Although the telescopes making up the EHT are not physically connected, they are able to synchronize their recorded data with atomic clocks — hydrogen masers — which precisely time their observations. These observations were collected at a wavelength of 1.3 mm in the 2017 campaign. Each telescope of the EHT produced enormous amounts of data – roughly 350 terabytes per day – which was stored on high-performance helium-filled hard drives. These data were flown to highly specialised supercomputers — known as correlators — at the Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy and MIT Haystack Observatory to be combined. They were then painstakingly converted into an image using novel computational tools developed by the collaboration.This image is the average of three different imaging methods after convolving each with a circular Gaussian kernel to give matched resolutions. The image is shown in units of brightness temperature, T b = S &#x03BB; 2 / 2 k B &#x03A9; {\displaystyle {T}_{\rm {b}}=S{\lambda }^{2}/2{k}_{\rm {B}}{\rm {\Omega }}} , where S is the flux density, λ is the observing wavelength, k B {\displaystyle {k}_{\rm {B}}} is the Boltzmann constant, and Ω is the solid angle of the resolution element. Español: La Fundación Nacional para la Ciencia y el Telescopio del Horizonte de Sucesos (EHT) han contribuido en observaciones que rompen paradigmas sobre el colosal agujero negro en el centro de la lejana galaxia Messier 87.Esta imagen del M87* proviene de observaciones del EHT realizadas el 11 de abril de 2017 y es un ejemplar representativo de las imágenes obtenidas durante la campaña de 2017. La imagen es el resultado de combinar tres métodos distintos de generación de imágenes tras convolucionar cada uno con un núcleo gaussiano circular para producir resoluciones equiparables. La imagen se muestra en unidades de temperatura de brillo, T b = S &#x03BB; 2 / 2 k B &#x03A9; {\displaystyle {T}_{\rm {b}}=S{\lambda }^{2}/2{k}_{\rm {B}}{\rm {\Omega }}} , donde S es la densidad de flujo, λ es la longitud de onda de observación, k B {\displaystyle {k}_{\rm {B}}} es la constante de Boltzmann y Ω es el ángulo sólido del elemento de resolución. Euskara: Inoiz ikusitako lehen zulo beltza, Messier 87 galaxian Français&#160;: La National Science Foundation et l'Event Horizon Telescope, à un consortium de 33 télescopes/instituts/universités dans le monde, ont contribué à l'observation du trou noir gargantuesque au cœur de la galaxie lointaine Messier 87. L'image EHT de M87* tirée des observations du 11 avril 2017, à titre d'exemple représentatif des images recueillies lors de la campagne de 2017. L'image est la moyenne de trois méthodes d'imagerie différentes après convolution avec un noyau gaussien circulaire pour donner des résolutions adaptées. L'image est affichée en unités de température de luminosité, T b = S &#x03BB; 2 / 2 k B &#x03A9; {\displaystyle {T}_{\rm {b}}=S{\lambda }^{2}/2{k}_{\rm {B}}{\rm {\Omega }}} , où S est la densité de flux, λ est la longueur d'onde d'observation, k B {\displaystyle {k}_{\rm {B}}} est la constante de Boltzmann et Ω est l'angle solide de l'élément de résolution. Italiano: Il buco nero supermassiccio nel nucleo della galassia ellittica Messier 87 nella costellazione della Vergine. Si tratta della prima foto diretta di un buco nero, realizzata dal progetto internazionale Event Horizon Telescope. 日本語: イベントホライズンテレスコープ(EHT) - 国際協力による電波望遠鏡プロジェクトにより撮影されたM87中心の巨大ブラックホールの画像 Kernowek: Radyo hevelep a toll du en Messier 87. Erbynn kachyans "Event Horizon Telescope" (sowsnek) an eth pellweler sett. Português: A National Science Foundation e o Event Horizon Telescope contribuem para as observações revolucionárias do gigantesco buraco negro no coração da distante galáxia Messier 87. Русский: Телескоп «Горизонт событий» (EHT) - массив из восьми наземных радиотелескопов, созданный в рамках международного сотрудничества, в масштабе планеты, предназначен для захвата изображений черной дыры. На скоординированных пресс-конференциях по всему миру исследователи EHT показали, что им это удалось, представив первое прямое визуальное свидетельство сверхмассивной черной дыры в центре Мессье-87 и ее тени. Slovenčina: 10.4. 2019 zverejnili vedci z projektu EHT prvú fotografiu z okraja čiernej diery. Konkrétne ide o čiernu dieru v strede Mliečnej dráhy. Українська: Перше зображення чорної діри, отримане у рамках проекту «Event Horizon Telescope» і опубліковане у квітні 2019 року 中文: 此照片是室女A星系中心的巨大黑洞。美國國家科學基金會和事件視界望遠鏡為觀測巨大黑洞做出了巨大貢獻。此照片拍攝於2017年4月11日，是當年的代表性圖像。 在用圓形高斯核對每個成像方法進行卷積以得到匹配的分辨率之後，圖像是三種不同成像方法的平均值。 圖像以亮度溫度為單位顯示， T b = S &#x03BB; 2 / 2 k B &#x03A9; {\displaystyle {T}_{\rm {b}}=S{\lambda }^{2}/2{k}_{\rm {B}}{\rm {\Omega }}} ，其中S是磁通密度，λ是觀察波長， k B {\displaystyle {k}_{\rm {B}}} 是玻爾茲曼常數，Ω是分辨率元素的立體角。 Nederlands: De Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) - een array op planeetschaal van acht radiotelescopen op de grond, gesmeed door internationale samenwerking - was ontworpen om beelden van een zwart gat vast te leggen. In gecoördineerde persconferenties over de hele wereld hebben EHT-onderzoekers geopenbaard dat ze erin geslaagd zijn, het eerste directe visuele bewijs van het supermassieve zwarte gat in het centrum van Messier 87 en zijn schaduw onthullen. Bahasa Indonesia: Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) - array delapan skala teleskop radio berbasis planet yang ditempa melalui kolaborasi internasional - dirancang untuk menangkap gambar lubang hitam. Dalam konferensi pers terkoordinasi di seluruh dunia, para peneliti EHT mengungkapkan bahwa mereka berhasil, mengungkap bukti visual langsung pertama dari lubang hitam supermasif di pusat Messier 87 dan bayangannya. Čeština: Událost Horizon Telescope (EHT) - planetová škála osmi pozemních rádiových teleskopů kovaných prostřednictvím mezinárodní spolupráce - byla navržena tak, aby zachytila obrazy černé díry. V koordinovaných tiskových konferencích po celém světě vědci EHT odhalili, že uspěli a odhalili první přímý vizuální důkaz supermasivní černé díry v centru Messieru 87 a jeho stínu. Polski: Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) - zestaw ośmiu naziemnych radioteleskopów w skali globalnej wykutych w ramach współpracy międzynarodowej - został zaprojektowany do rejestrowania obrazów czarnej dziury. Podczas skoordynowanych konferencji prasowych na całym świecie naukowcy EHT ujawnili, że im się to udało, odkrywając pierwszy bezpośredni wizualny dowód supermasywnej czarnej dziury w centrum Messiera 87 i jego cienia. 한국어: Event Holizon Telescope (EHT) - 블랙홀의 이미지를 캡처하기 위해 국제 공동 작업을 통해 만들어진 8 개의 지상 기반 무선 망원경으로 이루어진 행성 규모의 배열입니다. 전 세계의 기자 회견에서 EHT 연구원들은 메시에 87의 중심과 그 그림자에있는 초대형 블랙홀의 최초의 직접적인 시각적 증거를 발표하면서 성공했다고 밝혔다. Türkçe: Uluslararası işbirliğiyle yapılan sekiz kara tabanlı radyo teleskopu olan gezegen ölçeğinde bir dizi olan Event Horizon Teleskopu (EHT) bir kara deliğin görüntülerini yakalamak için tasarlandı. EHT araştırmacıları, dünya genelindeki koordineli basın konferanslarında, Messier 87'nin merkezinde ve gölgesinde yer alan süper kütleli kara deliğin ilk doğrudan görsel kanıtını ortaya koyduklarını açıkladılar. فارسی: تلسکوپ رویداد افق (EHT) - مجموعه ای از مقیاس های سیاره ای از هشت تلسکوپ مبتنی بر زمین که از طریق همکاری بین المللی ساخته شده است، برای گرفتن تصاویر سیاهچاله طراحی شده است. در کنفرانس های هماهنگ مطبوعاتی در سراسر جهان، محققان EHT نشان دادند که آنها موفق به ارائه اولین شواهد بصری مستقیم سیاهچاله فوق العاده در مرکز مسیه 87 و سایه آن شدند. Svenska: Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) - ett planetstort nätverk av åtta markbaserade radioteleskop i internationellt samarbete - utformades för att ta bilder av ett svart hål. I samordnade presskonferenser över hela världen visade EHT-forskare att de lyckats, och avslöjade de första direkta visuella bevisen på det supermassiva svarta hålet i Messier 87s centrum och dess skugga. Dansk: Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) - et planetstort netværk af otte jordbaserede radioteleskoper i internationalt samarbejde - var designet til at fange billeder af et sort hul. På koordinerede pressekonferencer over hele verden viste EHT-forskere, at de lykkedes at afsløre de første direkte visuelle beviser for det supermassive sorte hul i Messier 87's centrum og dets skygge. Norsk bokmål: Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) - et planetstort nettverk av åtte jordbaserte radioteleskoper i internasjonalt samarbeid - ble laget for å fange bilder av et svart hull. I samordnede pressekonferanser over hele verden viste EHT-forskere at de lyktes, og avslørte de første direkte visuelle bevisene på det supermassive svart hullet i Messier 87s sentrum og dets skygge. Suomi: Event Horizon -teleskooppi (EHT) on kansainvälisen yhteistyön avulla toteutettu kahdeksan maanpäällisen radioteleskoopin muodostama kokonaisuus, joka on suunniteltu kuvaamaan mustaa aukkoa. Koordinoiduissa lehdistötilaisuuksissa eri puolilla maailmaa EHT: n tutkijat osoittivat onnistuneensa paljastamalla ensimmäiset suorat visuaaliset todisteet Messier 87: n keskellä olevasta supermassiivisesta mustasta aukosta ja sen varjosta. Română: Telescopul pentru orizont de eveniment (EHT) - o gamă planetară de opt telescoape la sol pe platformă, forjată prin colaborare internațională - a fost concepută pentru a capta imagini ale unei găuri negre. În cadrul conferințelor de presă organizate în întreaga lume, cercetătorii EHT au dezvăluit că au reușit să dezvăluie primele dovezi directe ale gaurii negre supermassive din centrul lui Messier 87 și a umbrei sale. Català: L’Event Horizon Telescope (EHT), dissenyat per capturar imatges d’un forat negre, va ser dissenyat per capturar imatges d’un forat negre. Gaeilge: Imaxe de radio do buraco negro Pōwehi, situada en Messier 87 Беларуская: Радыё малюнак чорнай дзіркі Pōwehi, размешчаны ў Messier 87 Slovenščina: Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) - planetno množica osmih zemeljskih radijskih teleskopov, kovanih v mednarodnem sodelovanju - je bila zasnovana za zajemanje slik črne luknje. Na usklajenih tiskovnih konferencah po vsem svetu so raziskovalci EHT razkrili, da jim je uspelo razkriti prve neposredne vizualne dokaze o supermasivni črni luknji v središču Messierja 87 in njeni senci. Bahasa Melayu: Teleskop Horizon Acara (EHT) - sebuah rangkaian skala teluskop lapan berasaskan bumi yang dipalsukan melalui kerjasama antarabangsa - direka untuk menangkap imej-imej lubang hitam. Dalam persidangan akhbar yang terselaras di seluruh dunia, penyelidik EHT mendedahkan bahawa mereka berjaya, membentangkan bukti visual langsung pertama lubang hitam supermassive di pusat Messier 87 dan bayangannya. Български: Събитието Horizon Telescope (EHT) - мащаб от осем наземни радиотелескопа, създаден чрез международно сътрудничество, е проектиран да заснеме изображения на черна дупка. На координирани пресконференции по целия свят, изследователи на EHT разкриха, че са успели, откривайки първите директни визуални доказателства за супермасивната черна дупка в центъра на Messier 87 и нейната сянка. Tiếng Việt: Kính thiên văn chân trời sự kiện (EHT) - một mảng gồm 8 kính viễn vọng vô tuyến trên mặt đất được rèn qua sự hợp tác quốc tế - được thiết kế để ghi lại hình ảnh của một lỗ đen. Trong các cuộc họp báo phối hợp trên toàn cầu, các nhà nghiên cứu EHT tiết lộ rằng họ đã thành công, tiết lộ bằng chứng trực quan đầu tiên về lỗ đen siêu lớn ở trung tâm Messier 87 và bóng của nó. ไทย: กล้องโทรทรรศน์ขอบฟ้าเหตุการณ์ (EHT) - อาเรย์ระดับโลกของกล้องโทรทรรศน์วิทยุภาคพื้นแปดตัวที่ถูกสร้างขึ้นจากความร่วมมือระหว่างประเทศ - ได้รับการออกแบบมาเพื่อจับภาพหลุมดำ ในการแถลงข่าวร่วมกันทั่วโลกนักวิจัย EHT เปิดเผยว่าพวกเขาประสบความสำเร็จเปิดเผยหลักฐานทางภาพโดยตรงครั้งแรกของหลุมดำมวลมหาศาลที่ใจกลาง Messier 87 และเงาของมัน हिन्दी: द इवेंट होराइज़न टेलीस्कोप (ईएचटी) - अंतर्राष्ट्रीय सहयोग के माध्यम से आठ ग्राउंड-आधारित रेडियो दूरबीनों का एक ग्रह-स्केल सरणी - एक ब्लैक होल की छवियों को कैप्चर करने के लिए डिज़ाइन किया गया था। दुनिया भर में समन्वित प्रेस सम्मेलनों में, ईएचटी शोधकर्ताओं ने खुलासा किया कि वे सफल रहे, मेसियर 87 के केंद्र में सुपरमासिव ब्लैक होल के पहले प्रत्यक्ष दृश्य साक्ष्य और इसकी छाया का अनावरण किया। עברית: טלסקופ אופק האירועים (EHT) - מערך בקנה מידה פלנטרי של שמונה טלסקופי רדיו מבוססי קרקע שנזויפו באמצעות שיתוף פעולה בינלאומי - נועד לצלם תמונות של חור שחור. במסיבות עיתונאים מתואמות ברחבי העולם חשפו חוקרי EHT כי הם הצליחו, וחשפו את העדויות הוויזואליות הישירות הראשונות של החור השחור העל-מסיבי במרכז מסייר 87 וצלו. ລາວ: ຮູບພາບຫຼຸມ​ດໍາ M87
context_page_description: Jean-Pierre Luminet is a French astrophysicist, writer and poet, world-known specialist of black holes and cosmology. He works as research director for the CNRS, and is a member of the Laboratoire d’Astrophysique de Marseille, of the Laboratoire Univers et Théories of the Paris-Meudon Observatory and a visiting scientist at the Centre de Physique Théorique in Marseilles.
  He has published many articles in the most prestigious journals and reviews in these areas. He has been awarded several prizes for his work in pure science and in science communication. He also serves on the editorial board of Inference: The International Review of Science.
  The asteroid 5523 Luminet, discovered in 1991 at Mt Palomar Observatory, was named after him.
  Indeed, one of Luminet's greatest efforts has been to make his research work understandable to the non-scientific community. Luminet is also a prominent figure in art and literature. He has produced fifteen popular science books, seven historical novels, TV documentaries, multimedia productions, and six collections of poetry. He is also an artist, an engraver, a sculptor and a musician.
context_section_description: After studies in Mathematics at Saint-Charles University of Marseilles, in 1976 he moved to Paris-Meudon Observatory to undertake a PhD with Brandon Carter as his advisor. After a few months spent at the Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics (D.A.M.T.P) in Cambridge, England, where he met Stephen Hawking, in 1977 he defended his PhD thesis at Paris University on the subject of Singularities in Cosmology. In 1979 he got a permanent research position at the CNRS and developed his scientific activities at Paris Observatory until 2014, before joining the Laboratoire d’Astrophysique de Marseille. In the interval he was a visiting scientist at the University of São Paulo, Brazil (1984 and 1988), at the University of Berkeley, California (1989–1990) and a visiting astronomer at the European Southern Observatory, Chile (2005)
  1979 – He created the first "image" of a black hole with an accretion disk using nothing but an early computer, much math and India ink, predicting that it could apply to the supermassive massive black hole in the core of the elliptical galaxy M87. In April 2019 the Event Horizon Telescope Consortium provided a spectacular confirmation of Luminet's predictions by providing the first telescopic image of the shadow of the M87* black hole and of its accretion disk.
  1982 –  With physicist Brandon Carter, he invented the concept of tidal disruption event (TDE), namely the destruction of a star passing in the vicinity of a supermassive black hole. They showed that this phenomenon could result in the violent destruction of the star in the form of a  "stellar pancake", causing a reactivation of nuclear reactions in the core of the star in the stage of its maximum compression. With other collaborators Luminet later developed the model of tidal destruction, predicting specific observational signatures and introducing the concept of “tidal supernovae”. Finally the theory of TDE  was confirmed by the observation of spectacular eruptions resulting from the accretion of stellar debris by a massive object located in the heart of Active Galactic Nuclei such as NGC 5128 or NGC 4438, and even explains the superluminous supernova SN 2015L, better known by the code name ASASSN-15lh, interpreted as the tidal explosion of a white dwarf just before being absorbed beneath the horizon of a massive black hole.
  1995 – With his colleague Marc Lachièze-Rey, he coined the term "Cosmic Topology" for describing the shape of space, proposing a variety of multiply-connected universe models compatible with the standard Friedmann-Lemaître models of relativistic cosmology.
  2003 –  Large scale anomalies in the anisotropies of the cosmic microwave background observed by the WMAP satellite led to the suggestion, by Jean-Pierre Luminet of the Observatoire de Paris and colleagues, that the shape of the universe is a finite dodecahedron, attached to itself by each pair of opposite faces to form a Poincaré homology sphere. During the following years, astronomers searched for more evidence to support this hypothesis but found none.
  Jean-Pierre Luminet is also a specialist in the history of cosmology and in particular the emergence of the concept of the Big Bang, emphasizing in several books and articles the leading role played by the Belgian priest and cosmologist Georges Lemaître. In 2018 the International Astronomical Union (IAU) recommended that the so-called Hubble's law – which relates to the Universe's expansion and underpins modern cosmology – now be known as the Hubble-Lemaître law.
  Now working in Quantum Gravity Theories, Luminet published a critical analysis of the Holographic principle and the AdS/CFT correspondence.
caption: The first direct image of a black hole, imaged by the Event Horizon Telescope and published in April 2019
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