A black hole that could be four times the size of our sun has been found “free” in our galaxy by itself, researchers claim. Researchers at the University of California say there could be up to 200 million such “free floating” black holes in our galaxy. Black holes are invisible unless they are part of a stellar bin or surrounded by a magnifying glass. The researchers used a “gravitational lens” – where the black hole distorts and illuminates light coming from “behind” as seen from Earth. Researchers are not yet sure if the object is a black hole or a neutron star (the heavy “nucleus” left behind after a supernova explosion. Read more: What are rapid radio bursts and why do they look like aliens? The team, led by graduate student Casey Lam and Jessica Lu, an associate professor of astronomy at UC Berkeley, estimates that the mass of the invisible solid is between 1.6 and 4.4 times that of the Sun. Because astronomers believe the remnant of a dead star must be heavier than 2.2 solar masses to collapse into a black hole, UC Berkeley researchers warn that the object could be a neutron star instead of a black hole. Neutron stars are also dense, extremely solid objects, but their gravity is balanced by the internal neutron pressure, which prevents further collapse in a black hole. Whether it is a black hole or a neutron star, the object is the first dark stellar remnant – a stellar “ghost” – to be discovered wandering in the galaxy without coupling to another star. Determining how many of these solid objects inhabit the galaxy will help astronomers understand the evolution of stars – especially how they die – and our galaxy. Read more: Telescope detects 100 mysterious radio signals billions of light-years away It could also reveal if any of the invisible black holes are primitive black holes, which some cosmologists believe were made in large quantities during the Big Bang. The story goes on The analysis by Lam, Lu and their international team was accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journal Letters. The team also concluded that the potential population of black holes in the galaxy is 200 million – roughly what most theorists have predicted. The duration of the lens incident was the main information that the researchers were examining a black hole, Lam said. In 2020, it showed that the best way to look for micro-lens black holes was to look for very large events. Only 1% of detectable microfiche events are likely to come from black holes, he said, so looking at all the facts would be like looking for a needle in a haystack. But, Lam estimated, about 40% of microfiche events lasting more than 120 days are likely to be black holes. “How long the flash event lasts is a hint of how massive the foreground lens is that bends the starlight in the background,” Lam said. “Big events are more likely due to black holes. However, this is not a guarantee, because the duration of the brightness episode depends not only on the mass of the foreground lens, but also on how fast the foreground lens and the star move.” of the background to each other. “However, by also taking measurements of the apparent position of the background star, we can confirm whether the lens in the foreground is really a black hole.” I’m watching; Footage shows a black hole in our galaxy
