Hey, I study Astronomy at GCSE level and have recently studied black holes. I have, of course, come across the normal theory of what a 'black hole' is - a star which has died and is so dense, and has such a strong gravitational force, that light simply cannot escape from it. But, after reading an Astronomy textbook written by Patrick Moore, I have come across another, slightly different theory for it.
It states that when a star (with a mass 8 times larger than that of our own Sun) dies, it collapses, extremely violently, and keeps doing so until the rate of its collapse exceeds the speed of light - thus being faster than light itself and not alowing any to escape. The nearest black hole similar to this is said to be Cygnus X-1, 6500 light-years from the Solar System.
I cannot find any other reference to this theory. Are black holes caused by strong gravity or bloody high speeds? Or have I just mis-interpreted the text?
2006-10-06
11:41:39
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6 answers
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Anonymous