With the help of 3D AMR hydrodynamical simulations we aim at understanding G2’s nature, recent evolution and fate in the coming years. By exploring the possible parameter space of the diffuse cloud scenario, we find that a starting point within the disc of young stars is favoured by the observations, which may hint at G2 being the result of stellar wind interactions.

We study the evolution of G2 in a Compact Source Scenario, where G2 is the outflow from a low-mass central star moving on the observed orbit. This is done through 3D AMR simulations of the hydrodynamic interaction of G2 with the surrounding hot accretion flow. A comparison with observations is done by means of mock position-velocity (PV) diagrams. We found that a massive (Ṁw = 5× 10−7M⊙ yr−1) and slow (vw = 50 km s−1) outflow can reproduce G2’s properties. A faster outflow (vw = 400 km s−1) might also be able to explain the material that seems to follow G2 on the same orbit.

Understanding our Galactic Center is easier with insights from nearby galactic nuclei. Both the star formation activity in nuclear gas disks, driven by bars and nuclear bars, and the fueling of low-luminosity AGN, followed by feedback of jets, driving molecular outflows, were certainly present in our Galactic Center, which appears now quenched. Comparisons and diagnostics are reviewed, in particular of m = 2 and m = 1 modes, lopsidedness, different disk orientations, and fossil evidences of activity and feedback.

The history of supermassive black holes’ activity can be partly constrained by monitoring the diffuse X-ray emission possibly created by the echoes of past events propagating through the molecular clouds of their respective environments. In particular, using this method we have demonstrated that our Galaxy’s supermassive black hole, Sgr A⋆, has experienced multiple periods of higher activity in the last centuries, likely due to several short but very energetic events, and we now investigate the possibility of studying the past activity of other supermassive black holes by applying the same method to M31⋆. We set strong constraints on putative phase transitions of this more distant galactic nucleus but the existence of short events such as the ones observed in the Galactic center cannot be assessed with the upper limits we derived.

Because of the unique observational challenges -extreme crowding and extinction- any existing large-scale near-infrared (NIR) imaging data on the Galactic Center (GC) are limited by either one, or a combination, of the following: saturation, lack of sensitivity, too low angular resolution, or lack of multi-wavelength coverage. To overcome this situation, we are currently carrying out a sensitive, 0.2” resolution JHK imaging survey of the Galactic Centre with HAWK-I/VLT. Thanks to holographic imaging, we achieve a similar resolution than with HST/WFC, but can cover also the long NIR, beyond 2 micrometers, which is essential to deal with extinction. Our survey is supported by an ESO Large Programme and will provide photometrically accurate (few percent uncertainty for H < 18 stars), high-angular resolution, NIR data for an area of several 1000 pc2, a more than ten-fold increase compared to the current state of affairs. Here we present an overview and first results.