Centre of the Galaxy

[Boreal]

In the 41st Millenium, what's in the centre of the Galaxy?

Simple question really, I was wondering if anyone has read any fluff about Mankind expanding into the centre of the galaxy and discovering anything. After all Terra is off to one side and we have nids attacking the east and south but what's going on in the really bright middle bit? It's not a serious question i.e. blackhole, modern astro-physics theory etc just a purely fluff-based question e.g. any gribblies/chaos god/Uber-C'Tan/The Big E's mum and dad etc

[Rogue Star]

Squats.

[Buddha777]

I could be mistaken but I believe 40k follows semi-reality in that the center of the galaxy is just black holes and dead stars. This is opposed to say sci-fi like star wars where the center of the galaxy is the most important and inhabited.

[TheDungen]

I dotn think so, i have never heard any reference to black holes in 40k, in most cases what earlier scientists belived was black holes a´have turned out to be warpstorms. So that would eb my guess, a massive warpstorm with no stable paths in or out of it (makign it useless to the forces of chaos). however if anyone can point out the eistance of backholes in the 40k universe then i'll gladly go with same as in reality theory.

[Dhurrin]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't the Maelstrom in the centre of the galaxy?

[Twisted Heretic]

Nope. The Maelstrom is close to the central core of the galaxy, but not actually in it. It's still in the 'arms' so to speak.

[Stonerhino]

The Old necron codex references the destruction of whole areas of space with black holes.

[Iron_Lord]

I could be mistaken but I believe 40k follows semi-reality in that the center of the galaxy is just black holes and dead stars. This is opposed to say sci-fi like star wars where the center of the galaxy is the most important and inhabited.

Not exactly. While the area just outside the core bulge is heavily populated, the core bulge itself is much more thinly populated, and much more dangerous to traverse, in Star Wars.

[chriscrowing]

As I recall, the core of the galaxy is very dense, full of high-G planets with big mineral resources but not especially life-supporting. This was why the Squats were supposed to live there - being the descendants of Dark Age human colonists who eveolved to deal with the high gravity by getting kinda stunty.

Of course, the squats were written out out as an aside in the Hive Fleet Leviathan fluff where Leviathan ate them. I find this unsatisfying as the Squat worlds wouldnt have been all that high in spare organic matter and the Squats were never exactly numerous, but I'd still expect some to have survived and the Hive Fleet to have gotten little sustenance for the effort expended.

Anyways - you have black holes, quite tightly packed stellar systems (relatively speaking) high-G worlds but not much thats been claimed by the major races on account of the high-G and radiation making organic life on the surface of these worlds kinda difficult.

[Lord Damocles]

Here's a map of the area occumpied by the Squat homeworlds in relation to the galactic centre.

The Ork map in the 5th ed. Rulebook suggests some level of Ork presence in the area too.

[Shamana]

Well I'm pretty sure the center isn't all black holes, but perhaps there are enough that their reflection in the warp somehow interferes with the light of the Astronomicon and/or warp travel in general? If I remember correctly the Imperium is more like a spider's web with a lot of space in between the links than a solid entity; they (re)discover systems all the time.

[TheDungen]

If there trualy are blakc holes in the wh 40k universe then that is what it is, and as for not only black holes, i dotn think anyone has gone close enough to look. That wuld after all be increadably stupid because of time dialation and massive tidal forces because of the high gravity. Even the squat wordls are out of the galaxtic habitable zone. By modern science they should not be able to support any life.

[baphomael]

Yea, I don't think there is much in the way of habitation within the core, mainly habitation ends around the periphery. If anything exists at all within the core is expect it to be psychic or energy based beings -warp phenomena or ctan like beings.

[PondaNagura]

I remember in the old novel "Eye of Terror" they talked about how ships have to enter the warp from a systems edge because the gravity from the star's mass interferes with warp travel. If that concept still holds true, it's safe to say warp travel would be darn near impossible around the galaxy core.

In the squat background they mention high gravity environments rich with mineral wealth (the furnace of the stars forges some fun elements), but as the map above shows they weren't at the core. I doubt anything could live there (except maybe c'tan), blackholes aside, imagine the radiation and white noise of the universe saturating the area.

[TheDungen]

The thing is you dont have to be in the core. you can divide the galazy into three circles the inner one is far to irradiated by cosmic radiation from the core to support life, the outer one is to far out ( i cant remember why) only the middle one is able to support life. That mean that in reality onli 1/3 of the galaxy is habitable, and even fewer of the stars in that area has habitable planets (or planets at all). Take a look at Drakes Equation.

[Theocracity]

If Black Holes exist in 40K, they're likely to be viewed with the same level of superstition as most cosmic events are. Thus they likely have fanciful names and might harbor strange events like Warp rifts or evidence of ancient Eldar / Necron super science.

They probably also are the reason for several areas of unexplored / unnavigable space, due to their gravitational effects. A civilized area of space might have mapped certain safe Warp routes that go completely around a Black Hole, so its residents never know it's there.

Thus I think the Core is probably classified the same way. Dense and huge stars and the central black hole would make it difficult to travel in and nearly uninhabitable except for dangerous plot hooks.

[Stonerhino]

IIrc, then the planet that the Culexus temple is on orbits a black hole. We it was actually just near a "Singularity" per codex Oldcrons page 9

[Boreal]

Interesting stuff guys thanks

[Iron_Lord]

Drake's equation has more to do with "where carbon-based life can evolve" rather than "where can support life (with a bit of technological support)".

The Imperium (and its predecessor in the Dark Age of Technology) may have colonized the outer arms even if they're slightly outside the "galactic habitable zone".

[TheDungen]

Yeah i know but we dont have any protection towards cosmic radiation as of today, thats one of the main reasons man hasnt expanded into space. Along with viable non rocket space flight.

I also think you underestmate the kind of radiation that the super dense suns close to the galactic core would give of.