Abstract:
The Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) Collaboration recently released the first images of the supermassive
black hole in the heart of the Milky Way galaxy. The ring size and shape in these images are consistent with
Einstein’s general theory of relativity. The location of this black hole in southern skies and its rapidly changing
appearance mean that expanding the EHT into Africa is critical to optimally utilise this unique gravitational
laboratory in the future. Leveraging our southern African geographic advantage will turn images into high-fidelity
movies – a game-changing milestone for precision tests of gravity with the next-generation EHT.
