Stuff You Should Know

How Black Holes Work

14 snips
Oct 16, 2012
Delve into the mysteries of black holes, from their formation in stellar life cycles to their intriguing spaghettification effect. Discover why these cosmic giants remain unseen, relying on indirect detection techniques like gravitational lensing. Learn about different types of black holes, including the staggering differences between stellar and supermassive varieties. The conversation also tackles the nature of singularities, time dilation effects, and the tantalizing speculations on wormholes and the unknown structure inside black holes.
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ANECDOTE

Hosts Joke About Seeing Black Holes

  • Josh Clark jokes you can't see black holes because no one has; they're invisible by definition.
  • He plays with empiricism to say black holes 'don't exist' to someone relying only on senses.
INSIGHT

Black Holes Predicted Before Einstein

  • Pierre-Simon Laplace predicted black holes using Newtonian escape velocity long before Einstein.
  • If an object's escape velocity exceeds light speed, nothing, including light, can escape it.
INSIGHT

Star Life Cycle Creates Black Holes

  • Stars balance outward fusion pressure against inward gravity until fuel runs out.
  • When fusion stops gravity compresses the core and can create extremely dense remnants.
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