# R3 | google/gemini-3.6-flash | run 1

## Prompt

Who was awarded the 2020 Nobel Prize in Physics, and for what? Cite your sources.

## Response

The 2020 Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded to Roger Penrose, Reinhard Genzel, and Andrea Ghez for their groundbreaking discoveries concerning black holes [MIT News Report](https://vertexaisearch.cloud.google.com/grounding-api-redirect/AUZIYQErwj6UUA49j0VmvMwP7Iu1fYn8zrXeHFXveiAZJgZm-g4ODootgN7QKKfW23hwZLpVLKugOtEQKymThIIrPl5pyIxD2KPGNGPXqP8tIBKKt_jbS1xdEMyQ25TrU9YKJlYMMNVnrFPWwucp6ckxgUhvr5FgwkE2D1kky2uJ85seoNkna-b2). Sir Roger Penrose received one half of the prize for proving that black hole formation is a robust prediction of Albert Einstein's general theory of relativity [UCLA Coverage](https://vertexaisearch.cloud.google.com/grounding-api-redirect/AUZIYQEfpiC6Ld_IjUO069PociltPoOUbMTENpl-q150Eo9Qp_aCvTKSWUXLnAmfBKjra6PDQk_Z6l7kSAj9n3ybs5UupmQqQlbxXHd19kFHfD2v6Ml5Se5Tvssd2luLClkfTzAixxfKolE6tWsYeRkJaLGbUF5z7FcjClyginGEkDkXvV0KDSKf6yGueos=). The remaining half was awarded jointly to Reinhard Genzel and Andrea Ghez for discovering a supermassive compact object at the center of the Milky Way galaxy [ResearchGate Overview](https://vertexaisearch.cloud.google.com/grounding-api-redirect/AUZIYQEpNVzyaqBV7h1Zg9gLBY6_z0Czgv5j7lqYXWZtMe1z325mb61e0uURRDlF3epR2Mri-FeXsNzd2b9_x3ji7lRq2LfaZ8IHMWtTwD-3yMgASMt45zYBA0Oo_ihNjw2bR9BDeUgc6p6JcutgjummZ54e27NVZYMOcynXTTj0gNAxDutrnt-Z5OgPLJWs6tgAuLNIhZhbkb4cBn03zgreXrFy).

## Laureate Breakdown and Official Citations

| Laureate | Share | Official Citation |
| --- | --- | --- |
| **Roger Penrose** | 1/2 | "for the discovery that black hole formation is a robust prediction of the general theory of relativity" [Nobel Archive](https://vertexaisearch.cloud.google.com/grounding-api-redirect/AUZIYQGYUA739PYSnAqBpaATvnX7Cd-lmowEdPXYLnXhb4oFartgsylwUSPrOYoUaPCIyjN-RiE_jjg9caqwybbm5k0HXnPBQRCE32eFgSfdRSLxY6vEVQxuDpAPJTze8-qc0zrhGyJFbQ4=) |
| **Reinhard Genzel** | 1/4 | "for the discovery of a supermassive compact object at the centre of our galaxy" [Nobel Archive](https://vertexaisearch.cloud.google.com/grounding-api-redirect/AUZIYQGYUA739PYSnAqBpaATvnX7Cd-lmowEdPXYLnXhb4oFartgsylwUSPrOYoUaPCIyjN-RiE_jjg9caqwybbm5k0HXnPBQRCE32eFgSfdRSLxY6vEVQxuDpAPJTze8-qc0zrhGyJFbQ4=) |
| **Andrea Ghez** | 1/4 | "for the discovery of a supermassive compact object at the centre of our galaxy" [Nobel Archive](https://vertexaisearch.cloud.google.com/grounding-api-redirect/AUZIYQGYUA739PYSnAqBpaATvnX7Cd-lmowEdPXYLnXhb4oFartgsylwUSPrOYoUaPCIyjN-RiE_jjg9caqwybbm5k0HXnPBQRCE32eFgSfdRSLxY6vEVQxuDpAPJTze8-qc0zrhGyJFbQ4=) |

## Scientific Contributions

**Theoretical Proof of Black Hole Formation**
In 1965, Roger Penrose proved mathematically that black holes are an inevitable consequence of general relativity rather than artifacts of idealized theoretical models [MIT News Report](https://vertexaisearch.cloud.google.com/grounding-api-redirect/AUZIYQErwj6UUA49j0VmvMwP7Iu1fYn8zrXeHFXveiAZJgZm-g4ODootgN7QKKfW23hwZLpVLKugOtEQKymThIIrPl5pyIxD2KPGNGPXqP8tIBKKt_jbS1xdEMyQ25TrU9YKJlYMMNVnrFPWwucp6ckxgUhvr5FgwkE2D1kky2uJ85seoNkna-b2). By introducing topological concepts such as *trapped surfaces*, he showed that once a massive object undergoes gravitational collapse beyond a critical threshold, time and space swap roles inside the event horizon, forcing all matter inward to form a gravitational singularity where known laws of physics cease [ResearchGate Overview](https://vertexaisearch.cloud.google.com/grounding-api-redirect/AUZIYQEpNVzyaqBV7h1Zg9gLBY6_z0Czgv5j7lqYXWZtMe1z325mb61e0uURRDlF3epR2Mri-FeXsNzd2b9_x3ji7lRq2LfaZ8IHMWtTwD-3yMgASMt45zYBA0Oo_ihNjw2bR9BDeUgc6p6JcutgjummZ54e27NVZYMOcynXTTj0gNAxDutrnt-Z5OgPLJWs6tgAuLNIhZhbkb4cBn03zgreXrFy).

**Discovery of Sagittarius A***
Starting in the 1990s, Reinhard Genzel and Andrea Ghez independently directed observational astronomy teams using world-class observatories—the Very Large Telescope (VLT) in Chile and the W. M. Keck Observatory in Hawaii [UCLA Coverage](https://vertexaisearch.cloud.google.com/grounding-api-redirect/AUZIYQEfpiC6Ld_IjUO069PociltPoOUbMTENpl-q150Eo9Qp_aCvTKSWUXLnAmfBKjra6PDQk_Z6l7kSAj9n3ybs5UupmQqQlbxXHd19kFHfD2v6Ml5Se5Tvssd2luLClkfTzAixxfKolE6tWsYeRkJaLGbUF5z7FcjClyginGEkDkXvV0KDSKf6yGueos=). Utilizing near-infrared wavelengths and adaptive optics to eliminate atmospheric distortion and pierce interstellar dust clouds, both teams tracked individual stars orbiting the center of the Milky Way over several decades [MIT News Report](https://vertexaisearch.cloud.google.com/grounding-api-redirect/AUZIYQErwj6UUA49j0VmvMwP7Iu1fYn8zrXeHFXveiAZJgZm-g4ODootgN7QKKfW23hwZLpVLKugOtEQKymThIIrPl5pyIxD2KPGNGPXqP8tIBKKt_jbS1xdEMyQ25TrU9YKJlYMMNVnrFPWwucp6ckxgUhvr5FgwkE2D1kky2uJ85seoNkna-b2). Their measurements confirmed that an unseen object containing approximately four million solar masses—Sagittarius A*—exerts gravitational control over the central region, providing definitive proof of a supermassive black hole [UCLA Coverage](https://vertexaisearch.cloud.google.com/grounding-api-redirect/AUZIYQEfpiC6Ld_IjUO069PociltPoOUbMTENpl-q150Eo9Qp_aCvTKSWUXLnAmfBKjra6PDQk_Z6l7kSAj9n3ybs5UupmQqQlbxXHd19kFHfD2v6Ml5Se5Tvssd2luLClkfTzAixxfKolE6tWsYeRkJaLGbUF5z7FcjClyginGEkDkXvV0KDSKf6yGueos=).

Would you like to explore the observational techniques used to track stars near Sagittarius A* or Penrose's mathematical proof in greater detail?
