Black holes have always been a mistery to all of us. What would happen if our Earth is attracted by one of them?
NASA defines black holes as a region in space where the force of gravity is so strong that nothing, not even light, can escape. There are some theories that explain black holes are invisible: as light cannot escape the gravity of the black hole, they are not visible to the eyes. However, astronomers have developed a series of machines capable of detecting them. NASA explains that they can see stars and material that are very close to black holes.
Three types of black holes
There are different sizes of black holes. The most common are stellar black holes: they are of a medium size, and its average size equals 20 times larger than the sun. Then, there are the tiny ones, which have the same mass as a large mountain, that are called primordial black holes. Finally, there are the largest, the supermassive black holes, with a million times the mass of our own Sun. Supermassive black holes are formed when the center of the galaxy of a very massive star collapses into itself, which also causes a supernova. Scientists believe that supermassive black holes form at the same time as the galaxy that houses them.
There’s a black hole in every large galaxy
One of the most surprising hypothesis that have been performed is that, at the center of every large galaxy, there is a supermassive black hole. In fact, our own Milky Way has a large black hole in the center. Is located 26,000 light-years from the Solar System, in a region called Sagittarius A, and its mass is equal to 4 million suns.
Nowadays, one of the most important questions is: can a black hole destroy the Earth? The truth is that there is no danger to our planet, as there is a hole in our galaxy. NASA clarifies that if one day the Sun would be replaced by a black hole, the earth would not be swallowed; in fact, it would continue on its orbit as usual.
Anyway, we are always guided by simple hypothesis: no matter how many images there are, or how much has NASA investigated. We do not know what the black hole can do or cause.
Mar Comas
mar.comas@plamarcell.net
