This eBook explores current (and past) theories pertaining to the existence of black holes in our universe. It aims to provide its readers with a fundamental understanding of what black holes are, what they are composed of, and where they developed.

Black holes are undoubtedly one of the most fascinating discoveries of modern astronomy, and their description one of the most daring intellectual feats of modern times. They have already become legendary, forming the basis of many myths, fantasies and science fiction movies. Are they really the monsters which devour light and stars; bottomless celestial pits into which all matter is sucked and crushed? Are they an observable reality, or are they just hypothetical objects from the theory of relativity? In answering such questions the author takes us on a fabulous journey through space and time. Dr Jean-Pierre Luminet is an astronomer at Meudon Observatory in France, a specialist on the subject of black holes, and has also acquired a reputation for being a gifted writer and communicator. In this book he makes the subject of black holes accessible to any interested reader, who will need no mathematical background.

Providing an introduction to the fascinating subject of black holes, this book is suitable for advanced undergraduates and first year postgraduates. It offers an introduction to the exact solutions of Einstein's vacuum field equations, describing spherical and axisymmetric (rotating) black holes.

Any theory – any theory at all – that begins with false assumptions will produce false results. Therefore, the most fundamental task of all is to examine and get right the assumptions that underlie a theory. How do science's fundamental assumptions stand up to scrutiny? Science falls apart at a particular aspect of existence that can be defined exactly – at singularities. The whole logic of science collapses when singularities are encountered. This is fantastically problematic for science given that black holes are centred on singularities, photons are singularities, and the whole of the Big Bang Universe came from a Singularity. What, ontologically, are singularities? Descartes gave us the answer hundreds of years ago. Singularities are minds, and from that single fact, science is turned on its head. Mind does not come from matter; matter comes from mind.

On December 26, 2015, the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) detected gravitational waves generated from merging black holes for the first time in human history. Through an engaging, easily accessible approach, the origins, dynamics, and ultimate fate of black holes are thoroughly unraveled so that students without a scientific background can grasp complex physics theories. This book supports the Next Generation Science Standards' emphasis on scientific collection and analysis of data and evidence-based theories by discussing the methods research universities and space agencies use to explore black holes.

In A Brief History of Black Holes, award-winning University of Oxford researcher Dr Becky Smethurst charts five hundred years of scientific breakthroughs in astronomy and astrophysics. Right now, you are orbiting a black hole. The Earth orbits the Sun, and the Sun orbits the centre of the Milky Way: a supermassive black hole, the strangest and most misunderstood phenomenon in the galaxy. In this cosmic tale of discovery, Dr Becky Smethurst takes us from the earliest observations of the universe and the collapse of massive stars, to the iconic first photographs of a black hole and her own published findings. She explains why black holes aren’t really ‘black’, that you never ever want to be ‘spaghettified’, how black holes are more like sofa cushions than hoovers and why, beyond the event horizon, the future is a direction in space rather than in time. Told with humour and wisdom, this captivating book describes the secrets behind the most profound questions about our universe – all hidden inside black holes. 'A jaunt through space history . . . with charming wit and many pop-culture references' – BBC Sky At Night Magazine

This book addresses graduate students in the first place and is meant as a modern compendium to the existing texts on black hole astrophysics. The authors present in pedagogically written articles our present knowledge on black holes covering mathematical models including numerical aspects and physics and astronomical observations as well. In addition, in their write-up of a panel discussion the participants of the school address the existence of black holes consenting that it has by now been verified with certainty.

What space objects can have millions of times more mass than our Sun, but they remain invisible? Black holes! Their gravity is so strong that not even light can escape. In this book, you'll learn about one of the amazing wonders of space. As part of the Searchlight BooksTM collection, this series explores outer space and sheds light on the question What's Amazing about Space? Fantastic photos, kid-friendly explanations of science concepts, and useful diagrams will help you discover the answers!

Dive into a mind-bending exploration of the physics of black holes Black holes, predicted by Albert Einstein’s general theory of relativity more than a century ago, have long intrigued scientists and the public with their bizarre and fantastical properties. Although Einstein understood that black holes were mathematical solutions to his equations, he never accepted their physical reality—a viewpoint many shared. This all changed in the 1960s and 1970s, when a deeper conceptual understanding of black holes developed just as new observations revealed the existence of quasars and X-ray binary star systems, whose mysterious properties could be explained by the presence of black holes. Black holes have since been the subject of intense research—and the physics governing how they behave and affect their surroundings is stranger and more mind-bending than any fiction. After introducing the basics of the special and general theories of relativity, this book describes black holes both as astrophysical objects and theoretical “laboratories” in which physicists can test their understanding of gravitational, quantum, and thermal physics. From Schwarzschild black holes to rotating and colliding black holes, and from gravitational radiation to Hawking radiation and information loss, Steven Gubser and Frans Pretorius use creative thought experiments and analogies to explain their subject accessibly. They also describe the decades-long quest to observe the universe in gravitational waves, which recently resulted in the LIGO observatories’ detection of the distinctive gravitational wave “chirp” of two colliding black holes—the first direct observation of black holes’ existence. The Little Book of Black Holes takes readers deep into the mysterious heart of the subject, offering rare clarity of insight into the physics that makes black holes simple yet destructive manifestations of geometric destiny.

This introduction to the fascinating subject of black holes fills a significant gap in the literature which exists between popular, non-mathematical expositions and advanced textbooks at the research level. It is designed for advanced undergraduates and first year postgraduates as a useful stepping-stone to the advanced literature. The book provides an accessible introduction to the exact solutions of Einstein's vacuum field equations describing spherical and axisymmetric (rotating) black holes. The geometry and physical properties of these spacetimes are explored through the motion of particles and light. The use of different coordinate systems, maximal extensions and Penrose diagrams is explained. The association of the surface area of a black hole with its entropy is discussed and it is shown that with the introduction of quantum mechanics black holes cease to be black and can radiate. This result allows black holes to satisfy the laws of thermodynamics and thus be consistent with the rest of physics. In this new edition the problems in each chapter have been revised and solutions are provided. The text has been expanded to include new material on wormholes and clarify various other issues.