The upcoming Roman space telescope could reveal a new class of ‘feather-light’ black holes, challenging existing theories of black hole formation. If these Earth-sized black holes are found, they could have significant implications for our knowledge of the early universe and the nature of dark matter. Credit: NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center NASAby Nancy Grace … Read more
When some people look at clusters of small holes, such as those in a lotus seed pod or honeycomb, they suddenly and inexplicably fill with an unpleasant, skin-crawling sensation. feeling. It turns out that the Internet can fuel this unofficial phobia. A series of experiments have now shown that online discussions about ‘trypophobia’ – or … Read more
Using the Hubble Space Telescope, astronomers have for the first time ever mapped the plasma burps of a feeding black hole-powered quasar relatively close to Earth. Although supermassive black holes with masses millions or billions of times greater than the Sun are thought to live at the heart of all galaxies, not all of these … Read more
This article was reviewed according to Science fact checked peer-reviewed publication trusted source proofread OK! An artist’s impression of a quasar wind (in light blue) being launched from the accretion disk (red-orange) around a supermassive black hole. Credit: NASA/CXC/M. Weiss, Catherine Grier and the SDSS Collaboration × close to An artist’s impression of a quasar … Read more
Small, primordial black holes that formed in the first fraction of a second after the Big Bang may have had company, in the form of even smaller supercharged black holes with the mass of a rhinoceros that quickly evaporated. A team of researchers has theorized that these tiny rhino black holes, which would represent an … Read more
Image of a primordial black hole forming amid a sea of hot, color-charged quarks and gluons a tiny fraction of a second after the Big Bang. Credit: Kaća Bradonjić According to the researchers, the universe could have produced microscopic black holes with enormous amounts of nuclear charge in the first quintillionth of a second. MIT … Read more
This article was reviewed according to Science fact checked peer-reviewed publication trusted source proofread OK! Credit: AI-generated image × close to Credit: AI-generated image For every kilogram of matter we can see – from the computer on your desk to distant stars and galaxies – there are 5 kilograms of invisible matter permeating our environment. … Read more
Black holes are weird. Predicted as a result of Einstein’s general theory of relativity, they contain an outer region known as the event horizon – from which nothing, even light, can escape. In addition, they are predicted to have an infinitely compact point where our understanding of physics collapses, and nothing makes any sense anymore. … Read more
Researchers have discovered that elusive intermediate-mass black holes can form in dense star clusters containing anywhere from tens of thousands to millions of tightly packed stars called “globular clusters.” An intermediate-mass black hole has a mass between 100 and 10,000 suns. They are heavier than black holes with masses of about 10 to 100 solar … Read more
The early universe contained much less miniature black holes than previously thought, making the origin of the missing matter in our cosmos an even bigger mystery, a new study suggests. Miniature or primordial black holes (PBHs) are black holes that are believed to have formed in the first fractions of a second after the Big … Read more