Researchers report in Physical Review Letters that collisions between black holes can propel newly merged cosmic sinkholes at speeds up to nearly one-tenth the speed of light. This means they can travel about 28,500 kilometers per second, which is equivalent to completing the average trip from Earth to the moon in about 13 seconds. These findings could help scientists understand the amount of energy released during the convergence of black holes.
If the gravitational waves resulting from the convergence are preferentially emitted in one direction, the resulting black hole will recoil in the opposite direction at a high speed, similar to the kickback from a gun (SN: 4/25/22).
Prior research suggested that the recoil from such merging events could propel black holes at speeds of up to about 5,000 kilometers per second. However, for this new study, astrophysicists Carlos Lousto and James Healy from the Rochester Institute of Technology in New York examined black hole interactions that were more head-on, resembling particles colliding in a particle accelerator.
The duo conducted over 1,300 simulations, including close flybys, direct collisions, and everything in between. They discovered that the fastest recoiling black holes were produced by grazing collisions that almost didn’t occur but still resulted in merging.
2023-08-18 10:00:00
Article from www.sciencenews.org