Black Hole Research Paper

Words: 1025
Pages: 5

Black holes are one of the greatest mysteries of nature. They are nearly impossible to see with telescopes and other instruments because of their interaction with light. Black holes are so difficult to see that it would be difficult to see one if it were right beside the Earth. This paper will provide an overview of the mystery that is the black hole and provide a discussion of some of the main features of black holes including the causes of black holes, the characteristics of black holes, and an overview of some current research and discovery relating to black holes.

According to hubblesite.org, the homepage for information gathered by the Hubble Telescope, black holes are areas in the universe where gravity is so overwhelming and strong that it pulls in all other forces within its event horizon. Gravity is so strong inside black holes that once something crosses the outer edge of the black hole, it cannot escape (hubblesite.org). Black holes are created by the collapse of a star. When an object as massive as a star collapses in on itself, the mass of the star becomes concentrated into what is known as a singularity or a single point in space. This single point is mind-bogglingly small and holds all the mass that was once in the star. It is so massive, yet so small that its gravitational force is strong enough to even prevent light—the fastest known force in existence—from escaping.
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Because even light cannot escape a black hole, scientists are unable to observe black holes directly and must resort to indirect measurement to observe the supermassive