M.K. Das Gupta, the first Indian radio astronomer, and his connection with the 2020 Physics Nobel Prize

TL;DR

This paper highlights M.K. Das Gupta's pioneering role in radio astronomy and his early indication of a supermassive black hole, connecting his work to the 2020 Nobel Prize discovery.

Contribution

It uncovers Das Gupta's contributions to black hole research and his historical significance in radio astronomy, previously underrecognized.

Findings

Das Gupta's 1953 radio observation of Cygnus A indicated a black hole.

His work predates and foreshadows modern black hole discoveries.

Das Gupta's career spanned major developments in astrophysics.

Abstract

Half of the 2020 Nobel Prize is awarded for discovering a super-massive black hole at the centre of our Galaxy. One of the first indications of the existence of a black hole at the centre of a galaxy was found by Jennison and Das Gupta in 1953 while carrying on a radio observation of the source Cygnus A. Mrinal Das Gupta, who was doing his PhD at Manchester University at the time of this discovery, spent the major part of his professional career at Calcutta University. We give an outline of Das Gupta's life and explain the scientific significance of his discovery.