The Galactic Center as a Paradigm for Low Luminosity Nuclei? The K-band
  identification of the DSO/G2 source from VLT and Keck data
  The super-massive 4 million solar mass black hole (SMBH) SgrA* shows flare
emission from the millimeter to the X-ray domain. The nucleus of the Milky Way
has properties (stellar cluster, young stars, molecular gas and an accreting
SMBH) that resemble those of currently higher luminous Low Luminosity Active
Galactic Nuclei. A detailed analysis of the infrared light curves shows that
the flares are probably generated in a single-state process forming a power-law
distribution of the flux density. Near-infrared polarimetry shows signatures of
strong gravity that are statistically significant against randomly polarized
red noise. Details of the emission mechanism are discussed in a
synchrotron/self-Compton model. SgrA* also allows to study the interaction of
the SMBH with the immediate interstellar and gaseous environment of the central
stellar cluster. Through infrared imaging of the central few arcseconds it is
possible to study both inflow and outflow phenomena linked to the SgrA* black
hole. In this context we also discuss the newly found dusty object that
approaches SgrA* and present a comparison between recent Keck and VLT K-band
data that clearly supports its detection as a about 19m K'-band continuum
source.
