Scientists working with the LIGO and Virgo gravitational-wave observatories have detected an oddball event: the merger of two black holes of notably different sizes.
About:
All 10 black hole mergers detected in the first two observing runs had binary components with similar masses.
But the new event, called GW190412, involved objects of about 8 and 30 solar masses, respectively.
This is the first time researchers have been able to confidently measure the spin of a black hole about to merge.
What is a black hole?
A black hole is a place in space where gravity pulls so much that even light cannot get out. The gravity is so strong because the matter has been squeezed into a tiny space.
This can happen when a star is dying.
Because no light can get out, people cannot see black holes. They are invisible. Space telescopes with special tools can help find black holes.
The special tools can see how stars that are very close to black holes act differently than other stars.
GW190412: Mismatched Black Holes Merge
Context:
Scientists working with the LIGO and Virgo gravitational-wave observatories have detected an oddball event: the merger of two black holes of notably different sizes.
About:
What is a black hole?