I’ve always been curious about the center of our galaxy. If it wasn’t obscured by dust, etc, would it be as bright in the sky as our sun?
That is a GREAT question.
I think that it wouldn’t be, mainly because the core is so far away. Also, even without the dust and gas, there are a large number of dimmer stars that would block out at least some of the light from the core. I know that sounds odd, but, think Algol.
As it is, there are some holes in the dust and gas towards the core. M 24, a great star cloud in the direction of the core, is actually one of these holes (at least, according to my Sky Safari software). You are looking through the Sagittarius arm of the galaxy, and on into the Norma arm, and THAT isn’t even the core, but, in front of it.
Now, if our galaxy was a Seyfert galaxy (a galaxy with an active core) it would be much brighter.
Beyond that, it would take an expert on the core.
What a GOOD question.