Researchers at the University of Waterloo developed a new detection method that will detect approximately 10 black holes per year, doubling the current number within two years. This method combines microlensing and radio wave interferometry to extract parameters such as mass, distance, and velocity from black hole events.
A team of astronomers discovered that a massive flare in a distant galaxy was actually a tidal disruption event caused by a rapidly spinning supermassive black hole. The finding marks the first time a TDE has been used to study black hole spin, providing new insights into stellar death.
Astronomers have discovered a 'nearly naked' supermassive black hole after a smaller galaxy passed through a larger neighbor, stripping away nearly all its stars and gas. The remnant black hole is now speeding away at over 2,000 miles per second.
The LIGO Scientific Collaboration detected gravitational waves that could have been caused by the collision of two black holes. Researchers used theoretical models to test whether these signals could also be produced by gravastars, hypothetical objects proposed as an alternative to black holes.
Dense molecular gas disks are supplying gas directly to supermassive black holes at galaxy centers. The growth of supermassive black holes is enhanced by strong turbulence generated by supernova explosions in these disks.
Researchers at Imperial College London have developed a new sensor material that can detect biological signals, including heartbeats and brainwaves, with enhanced sensitivity. The material uses an ambipolar design, allowing for the transport of both electrons and holes, which enables improved signal detection in water-based environments.
Associate professor Chris Packham will use a $387,214 NSF grant to observe local galaxies and understand the nature of their central black holes. The project aims to uncover how these supermassive black holes influence galaxy formation.
Researchers at the University of Surrey have discovered hundreds of undetectable black holes within a globular cluster, overturning old theories on their formation. The study uses advanced simulations to map the cluster and its behavior, revealing the effects of these massive objects on the surrounding stars.
Scientists found a novel mutation in modern feral Hawaiian pigs that explains their black coats, suggesting humans across the world have selected and bred black pigs independently. The study suggests Polynesians brought domestic pigs to Hawaii 800 years ago and humans later selected for black coats on at least three separate occasions.
Researchers from Johns Hopkins University suggest that fast radio bursts could provide clues to dark matter by detecting black holes of a specific mass. The team argues that the brief flashes of radio-frequency radiation can detect black holes with masses predicted for dark matter, offering a direct probe of this phenomenon.
New data from NuSTAR reveals large numbers of black holes sending out high-energy X-rays, helping astronomers understand growth patterns and evolution of supermassive black holes. The study resolves 35% of the high-energy X-ray background, uncovering details about the most obscured black holes hidden in gas and dust.
The LIGO-Virgo collaboration's detection of binary black holes could be evidence of primordial black holes formed after the Big Bang. The observation would guide theories about the universe's early days and provide crucial clues about dark matter.
Rochester Institute of Technology professors Carlos Lousto and Manuela Campanelli have won separate grants worth $600,000 and $435,000 to advance gravitational wave astronomy. The funding will support research on black hole mergers and develop software tools for computational astrophysics.
Data from Japan's Hitomi X-ray satellite shows that supermassive black holes play a crucial role in the evolution of galaxies, regulating their growth by releasing energy that keeps plasma hot. This heat prevents galaxies from forming new stars and becoming even larger.
Physicists have devised a method to distinguish black holes from compact massive objects using the energy spectrum of particles moving in their vicinity. The method involves studying the behavior of scalar particles near these objects and finding discrete energy levels, which are absent in the case of black holes.
Researchers develop new method to detect and measure black hole superkicks using gravitational waves, which occur when two spinning supermassive black holes collide. eLISA space-based detector expected to detect several runaway black holes upon launch in 2034.
Researchers at RIT create a faster and more accurate way to assess gravitational wave signals, inferring the sources that made them. They use numerical simulations of binary black holes to extract information directly from the data, improving accuracy over previous approximations.
Researchers found a clandestine black hole, VLA J2130+12, within the Milky Way galaxy, which is about five times closer to Earth than previously thought. This black hole is pulling in material from a companion star at a very slow rate, making it nearly undetectable.
Scientists using cosmological simulations and gravitational wave signals predict initial mass of supermassive black hole seeds. The research aims to uncover mechanism that created these massive black holes and when they formed in the early Universe.
Computer simulations of evolving binary stars predict the formation of massive black hole binaries that can be detected by LIGO. The simulations show a high likelihood of these events occurring due to the production of low-metallicity stars in the early universe.
Astronomers from UMD and Michigan document X-rays bouncing off inner accretion disk near dormant black hole Swift J1644+57. The study reveals the shape and activity of the accretion disk, opening a door to reliable measurements of black hole spin.
Astronomers have used X-ray reverberation mapping to map the flow of gas near a newly awakened black hole for the first time. The study provides insights into the 'killer' black hole's hidden structures, revealing high-energy X-rays originate from a compact region near the black hole.
A new study in Nature predicts hundreds of massive black hole mergers each year observable with the second generation of gravitational wave detectors. The model takes into account differences in binary black hole production across the universe.
A team of astronomers using ALMA observed a supermassive black hole at the center of galaxy Abell 2597 feeding on chaotic downpour of cold, clumpy clouds. The discovery provides evidence for 'cold, chaotic accretion', a process that challenges traditional models of how black holes grow.
Astronomers discovered that magnetic instabilities in black hole jets determine their fate. Powerful jets can punch through surrounding gas into intergalactic space, while unstable ones fall apart and deposit energy within the galaxy.
Scientists observed gravitational waves for the second time, produced during the merger of two black holes. The detection was made possible by the enhanced capabilities of Advanced LIGO and Virgo detectors.
Researchers found that supermassive black holes at galaxy centers are likely to have weaker gravitational fields, making them harder to detect. This challenges previous assumptions about the detection of gravitational waves from merging galaxies.
The second detection of gravitational waves from merging black holes is a significant milestone in the development of physics. Scientists have found that the observed gravity waves were generated by two black holes with masses of 14 and 8 solar masses, which merged to form a single rotating black hole.
For the second time, scientists have detected gravitational waves, which provide information about their origins and gravity's nature. The event involved two smaller black holes that merged to form a more massive spinning black hole.
The Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory has detected a second pair of colliding black holes, validating the landmark discovery from earlier this year. RIT scientists played a crucial role in identifying and analyzing the gravitational wave signal, revealing diverse sizes and spins among black holes in the universe.
Scientists have detected gravitational waves from the merger of two black holes, 14 and 8 times the mass of the sun, producing a single massive spinning black hole. The detection provides new insights into the nature of gravity and the origins of these cosmic events.
The detection confirms the existence of binary black holes with a range of masses, forming from different stars. The event provides valuable data on gravitational waves and the nature of gravity, shedding light on the universe's most violent cosmic events.
Astrophysicists at Northwestern University predict that LIGO's first detection of merging black holes could have been formed through dynamic interactions in the star-dense core of an old globular cluster. The theory, known as dynamical formation, is one of two recognized main channels for forming binary black holes detected by LIGO.
A team of astronomers used ALMA to observe a cluster of towering intergalactic gas clouds raining in on the supermassive black hole at the center of an elliptical galaxy. The new findings reshape our understanding of how supermassive black holes feed, revealing a previously unknown process known as cold, chaotic accretion.
For the first time, astronomers have detected billowy clouds of cold, clumpy gas streaming towards a supermassive black hole at speeds of up to 800,000 miles per hour. The observation provides direct evidence to support the theory that black holes feed on clouds of cold gas.
Researchers detected billowy clouds of cold, clumpy gas streaming toward a black hole, suggesting two dinner modes for black holes: slow grazing on diffuse hot gas and quick consumption of clumps of cold gas. The findings represent the first direct evidence to support the hypothesis that black holes feed on clouds of cold gas.
Researchers detected cold gas clouds traveling at 1 million km/h toward a black hole in the Abell 2597 Cluster. The discovery offers new understanding of how black holes ingest fuel, with implications for our knowledge of accretion processes.
A new ALMA observation reveals that cold dense clouds can coalesce from hot intergalactic gas and feed a galaxy's central supermassive black hole. This challenges previous views of how supermassive black holes acquire mass, indicating a chaotic and dynamic feeding process.
A team of physicists has developed a new method to calculate the thermodynamics of black holes, leveraging quantum gravity and holographic principles. The study proposes that a 'condensate' of space quanta can describe homogeneous classical geometries, allowing for a more realistic and robust calculation of black hole entropy.
Italian researchers used Hubble data and computer models to identify two objects as potential seeds for supermassive black holes. These early black hole seed candidates are seen less than a billion years after the Big Bang and have an initial mass of about 100,000 times the Sun.
A new study by NASA scientist Alexander Kashlinsky proposes that primordial black holes, formed in the universe's first second, could make up dark matter. If correct, this would mean all galaxies are embedded within a vast sphere of black holes with masses similar to the sun.
Researchers use ALMA to accurately measure the mass of a supermassive black hole at the center of galaxy NGC 1332, shedding light on how galaxies and their black holes form. The findings suggest a coordinated growth between galaxies and their central black holes.
A team of astronomers used ALMA to measure the speed of carbon monoxide gas orbiting a supermassive black hole, calculating its mass as 660 million times greater than our Sun. This precise measurement is crucial for understanding these cosmic behemoths and their role in galaxy evolution.
Astronomers from the University of Cambridge have discovered strong winds leaving mysterious binary systems, with speeds exceeding 70,000 km/s. The findings confirm that these sources conceal compact objects pulling in matter at extraordinarily high rates.
The detection of a brief gamma-ray burst consistent with the same part of the sky as gravitational waves offers a unique window into the universe. By analyzing this event, scientists can gain insights into the dynamics leading up to black hole mergers and shed light on the nature of gravity.
Astronomers have discovered a record-breaking supermassive black hole weighing 17 billion suns in the center of a galaxy in a sparsely populated area of the universe. The massive object's size defies expectations, as it is 10 times more massive than predicted for a galaxy of its mass.
Researchers found a supermassive black hole with an estimated mass of 17 billion solar masses in the galaxy NGC 1600, located 200 million light-years from Earth. This discovery suggests that these massive objects may be more common than previously thought and could be living in smaller galaxies.
A University of Virginia study found that false beliefs about biological differences between black and white people contribute to undertreated pain among black patients. White medical students and residents who held these false beliefs showed lower pain ratings and less accurate treatment recommendations for black patients.
Researchers at Osaka University have simulated the formation of supermassive black holes, revealing that they are seeded by clouds of gas falling into potential wells created by dark matter. The simulations found a central seed particle growing rapidly to form a supermassive black hole, accompanied by misaligned accretion discs.
Astronomers have discovered the fastest ultraviolet winds ever seen near a supermassive black hole, with wind speeds of over 200 million miles per hour. This breakthrough study sheds light on quasar outflows and their role in galaxy formation.
Researchers accurately measured the rotational rate of an 18 billion solar mass supermassive black hole, one-third of the maximum spin rate allowed in General Relativity. The binary black hole model reveals a smaller companion orbiting around it, affecting accretion disk behavior.
Researchers suggest that twin black holes detected by LIGO might have formed inside a single, massive star. The star's death generated a gamma-ray burst, which was observed by the Fermi Space Telescope.
Researchers simulated a thin ring-shaped black hole in five dimensions, which breaks down Einstein's general theory of relativity if it exists outside an event horizon. The simulation revealed the formation of a 'naked singularity', causing laws of physics to break down and potentially rendering general relativity ineffective.
A research team led by GGC physicist Lior Burko simulated a rotating black hole for the first time, revealing that objects can stay intact as they approach the center. The simulation supports popular science fiction scenarios where black holes are used as portals for hyperspace travel.
Scientists observed ripples in spacetime called gravitational waves from colliding black holes, confirming a major prediction of Albert Einstein's general theory of relativity. The detected waves were produced during the merger of two black holes, with masses about 29 and 36 times that of the sun.
Scientists have observed ripples in spacetime, called gravitational waves, arriving from a cataclysmic event in the distant universe. This confirms a major prediction of Albert Einstein's general theory of relativity, providing information about gravity and its nature.
A Kyoto-led team reports that black hole activity can be observed through visible light during outbursts, and that optical rays provide reliable data for black hole activity. The study used a 20 cm telescope to observe V404 Cygni, detecting repetitive patterns with timescales of several minutes to a few hours.
Researchers at the University of Leicester suggest that supermassive black holes can grow up to 50 billion solar masses before their gas discs collapse, starving them of fuel. Without a disc, the black hole would stop growing, marking a significant limit on its size.
Researchers have discovered that the disks of gas and dust surrounding massive black holes are 'clumpy,' not smooth. The observations were made using NASA's NuSTAR and European Space Agency's XMM-Newton space observatory.
The Event Horizon Telescope detected magnetic fields near the event horizon of the Milky Way's central black hole, Sgr A*, for the first time. The findings suggest that these magnetic fields are disordered in some regions and organized in others, possibly related to jet generation.