Black Holes and Objectivity

Abstract

The first ever direct image of a black hole, released in April 2019, was a paradigm shift not just in scientific imaging, but also in the cultural appreciation of the unknown. Its realisation demanded a global technological collaboration on hitherto unseen scales and also the application of new and rigorous forms of objectivity. This text discusses how complex and esoteric planet-wide scientific apparatus and observations at the cutting edge of fundamental science demand a heightened awareness of objectivity and the implementation of transdisciplinarity.