Usually, black holes, those ultra-dense cosmic anomalies from which even light cannot escape, are the result of the death of a star in one of the most cataclysmic events of all: a supernova. However, a study published on October 23, 2024 in the journal Nature comes to call into question what we thought was a universal truth.
At the origin of a black hole, we find a particularly massive star. When its life comes to an end, the latter will see its core collapse on itself, resulting in one of the most devastating phenomena in the Universe: a supernova. But it doesn't stop there.
Indeed, as the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) points out, “all the rest of matter concentrates in a small point called the singularity.”The latter has such strong gravity that anything attracted to it never comes out.
There are three categories of black holes which are classified according to their solar mass:
- stellars whose mass is between 10 and 20 times that of the Sun
- intermediaries
- supermassives, which are found at the center of galaxies (Sagittarius A* is the one located at the center of the Milky Way) and whose mass is between several millions and several billion solar masses
A black hole would have formed “calmly”
Based on our knowledge in the field, we know that black holes are the result of a supernova. However, the Universe always manages to surprise us. This is how astronomers made an astonishing observation of one of these cosmic monsters: V404 Cygni.
Indeed, in view of the study published in Nature on October 23, 2024, the latter would indeed have been born from the collapse of a star, but without the explosion which is usually observed just afterwards. It would therefore be the consequence of a “failed supernova or when gravitational collapse acts too quickly for the supernova to occur.” said Kevin Burdge of MIT in comments reported by Reuters. This cosmic strangeness is located 7,800 light years from Earth in the constellation Cygnus and is believed to have formed 4 billion years ago.
It has been under the eye of scientists since 1992, as stated Reuters and forms a binary system, well not really, with a star from which it feeds on its matter. V404 Cygni would have a mass 9 times that of the Sun and feeds on a star whose mass is 70 times greater than that of our star.
One last surprise
Yes because there is one last one. Indeed, the binary system is in fact a triple system. There would not be just one star, but two which would orbit around the black hole and which constitute a source of cosmic “food” for V404 Cygni.
This triple system is even more of an anomaly because it should not have survived the death of the star which generated the black hole. “The triple system could not have survived if the black hole had been born with the supernova. This discovery therefore tells us that at least some black holes form without it. Which implies a silent implosion rather than an explosive supernova.” declared Kareem El-Badry of Caltech University (California).
We are therefore still far from having unlocked all the secrets of the Universe, but then what does it still have in store for us?
Source : Reuters / CSA
With an unwavering passion for local news, Christopher leads our editorial team with integrity and dedication. With over 20 years’ experience, he is the backbone of Wouldsayso, ensuring that we stay true to our mission to inform.
