Yes. New James Webb Space Telescope observations show that silicate dust and water can form or survive in the envelope of an ageing star only about 0.55 light-years from Sagittarius A*, the supermassive black hole at the centre of the Milky Way.
The finding comes from a detailed infrared study of IRS 3, one of the brightest mid-infrared objects in the crowded galactic centre. It does not mean that the black hole is producing water. Instead, it shows that a dying star can continue making and releasing chemically rich material in an environment filled with intense radiation.
What did Webb find near the Milky Way’s black hole?
- Clear infrared signatures of oxygen-rich silicate dust around IRS 3.
- The first clear detection of water in the star’s extended envelope.
- A layered shell of dust stretching roughly 10,000 astronomical units from the star.
- Dust temperatures ranging from about 1,200 kelvin near the star to roughly 100 kelvin farther out.
- Evidence that IRS 3 is losing mass rapidly and returning material to the galactic centre.
What is IRS 3?
IRS 3 is an asymptotic giant branch star: a cool, swollen star approaching the end of its life. Stars at this stage push gas and dust into space through powerful stellar winds. That expelled material can later become part of new stars, planets and smaller bodies.
The researchers estimate that IRS 3 has about six times the mass of the Sun and is roughly 72 million years old. That sounds young compared with the Sun’s 4.6 billion years, but more massive stars use their fuel far more quickly.
Earlier work had left uncertainty over whether IRS 3 was carbon-rich. Webb’s mid-infrared spectrum instead revealed two strong silicate features, identifying it as an oxygen-rich evolved star.
How did Webb detect the dust and water?
The team used Webb’s Mid-Infrared Instrument, or MIRI, as part of the MICONIC observing programme. Different molecules and minerals absorb and emit infrared light at characteristic wavelengths. A continuous mid-infrared spectrum therefore works like a chemical fingerprint.
By comparing the observed spectrum with models of light travelling through different arrangements of dust, the researchers reconstructed the envelope around IRS 3. The best-fitting picture is not a single uniform cloud but a series of layers with temperature falling sharply with distance.
Why is the discovery surprising?
The centre of the Galaxy is an extreme neighbourhood. Sagittarius A* contains about four million times the mass of the Sun, and the region around it is crowded with stars, energetic radiation, shocks and strong gravitational effects. Astronomers had reason to question whether fragile molecules and newly condensed grains could persist there.
IRS 3 shows that stellar dust production can be resilient. The star is not sitting at the edge of the black hole itself—0.55 light-years is still thousands of times the Earth-Sun distance—but on galactic scales it is remarkably close.
Why does dust near Sagittarius A* matter?
Cosmic dust is a small ingredient with an outsized role. Dust grains cool gas clouds, help molecules form, block and reradiate starlight, and supply solid material for planets. If evolved stars can keep enriching even the most hostile galactic centres, astronomers need to include that contribution when modelling how those regions change over time.
The result may also help researchers interpret infrared observations of the centres of other galaxies. Individual stars are much harder to separate at greater distances, so a well-resolved Milky Way example provides a useful test case.
Does this mean there could be life near the black hole?
No such conclusion follows from the study. Detecting water molecules is not the same as finding liquid water, a planet or a habitable environment. The water is part of a stellar envelope exposed to conditions very different from those on Earth.
What happens next?
Further Webb observations can test how common oxygen-rich dust and water are among other evolved stars near galactic centres. Comparing stars at different distances from Sagittarius A* could reveal where radiation begins to disrupt dust formation or molecular survival.
Sources
- European Space Agency: Dust and water spotted close to giant black hole, 11 August 2026.
- Astronomy & Astrophysics: scientific paper on IRS 3.
Research findings can be refined as new observations and analysis become available.