Black Holes
Latest about Black Holes

Doomed star circling supermassive black hole could be ripped apart in less than 6 years
By Keith Cooper published
Every time this doomed star plunges through a supermassive black hole's accretion disk, it loses orbital energy and triggers a burst of X-rays.

Hubble Telescope sees wandering black hole slurping up stellar spaghetti
By Sharmila Kuthunur published
Astronomers have caught a black hole far from the center of its galaxy ripping a star to shreds — offering for the first time evidence of a rogue supermassive black hole in action.

What can ripples in spacetime reveal about black holes? Quite a bit, it turns out
By Sharmila Kuthunur published
Cosmic echoes from some of the universe's most violent collisions are far more nuanced than scientists had realized, according to new research.

Has the James Webb Space Telescope discovered a 'missing' supermassive black hole? (video)
By Robert Lea published
Using the James Webb Space Telescope, astronomers have discovered "smoking gun" evidence of a hidden feeding supermassive black hole in a distant spiral galaxy.

How did this ancient black hole get so big?
By Paul Sutter published
While it's much smaller than the largest supermassive black holes detected, it's still a whopper considering how early in the history of the universe it appeared.

Ultralight dark matter may have helped monstrous black holes form in the early universe
By Paul Sutter published
The infant universe's population of huge black holes could owe itself to ultralight dark matter, scientists say.

NASA spacecraft spots monster black hole bursting with X-rays 'releasing a hundred times more energy than we have seen elsewhere'
By Robert Lea published
Astronomers have used space-based telescopes, including NASA's Swift X-ray observatory, to watch a monster black hole spring to life with powerful X-ray eruptions.

Could we use black holes to power future human civilizations? 'There is no limitation to extracting the enormous energy from a rotating black hole'
By Robert Lea published
Black holes power some of the most energetic phenomena in the known universe, but could they ever power an advanced human civilisation?

What is dark matter made of? New study bolsters case for 'primordial' black holes
By Paul Sutter published
In the early universe, primordial black holes could acquire a "dark charge," giving them an unnaturally long lifetime, new research suggests. This makes them an interesting candidate for dark matter.
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