What is a black hole? Thanks for asking!

The 2020 Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded to three scientists for their breakthroughs in understanding one of the Milky Way’s darkest secrets: the black hole. The winners were British physicist Sir Roger Penrose, American astronomer Andrea Ghez and German astrophysicist Reinhard Genzel. 

The closest black hole to Planet Earth is situated 1011 light years away and it’s believed one exists in every galaxy. Black holes generally form when a large star collapses in upon itself. As you may have guessed, black holes don’t emit any light and are therefore invisible in space. Their pulling force is so strong that nothing can escape, not even light.

If black holes are invisible, how can we even be sure they exist?

Black holes are indeed invisible, but astronomers have come up with ways to locate them. They have had to closely observe material and stars around black holes, which allows them to better understand the characteristics and behaviour of the black holes themselves, like their size and mass.

There are actually three main types of black hole: primordial, stellar and supermassive. Evidence suggests that all large galaxies have a supermassive black hole at their centre.

Scientists were able to detect the supermassive Sagittarius A* black hole in our galaxy by noticing that stars were orbiting around something that couldn’t be seen. Their presence in other galaxies has been revealed by high-energy jets of material, which can be emitted when a black hole consumes a star for example. 

How can black holes be so powerful that they can even trap light? Are you saying we’ve never been able to look directly at a black hole? In under 3 minutes, we answer your questions!

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