Can the existance of black holes be scientifically proven?

Question

and if so, how?

Answer 1

Yes. Black holes cannot be observed directly, of course, because they emit no light. But we can observe stars and dust and gas that orbit a black hole. And by watching one object orbiting the other object, we can measure the second object's mass.

Here's a (simplified) example. Suppose we notice that there's a star orbiting something else, but we can't see that something else. By watching the star we can see, we can find the mass of the something else. Let's say for sake of argument that the mass turns out to be 10 times the mass of our Sun. Any normal star that massive would be easily seen, so it can't be a normal star. White dwarfs and neutron stars simply can't get that massive, so it can't be one of those. The only other possibility is that it's a black hole!

There are other ways, too, that get a bit more complicated. But we have identified quite a few black holes, and we even know that most (if not all) galaxies have super-massive black holes at their centers.

Answer 2

The existence of black holes has been scientifically proven in a manner of speaking. Satellites and space probes have noticed strong exertion of X-Rays in areas where black holes are believed to be. Also, over time, stars have either moved position or disappeared entirely.

Answer 3

Black Holes have been observed, i'd say thats fairly scientifically proven. The mathematics of Black Holes is quite sound as well, and the predictions were made long before they were observed. Read anything by Stephen Hawking, his specialty is the black hole. and on the link below are good Hubble telescope shots of black holes feeding on the matter around them. Remember the black hole is invisible anyway, so we cant directly SEE it, but we can see all the matter around it being pulled in.

Answer 4

Yes. In fact, we know that most galaxies have very large black holes at their centers. We know this by watching how stars nearby the black hole orbit that black hole. This tells us the mass of the black hole. If the stars are close enough, we know that the density of the central object has to be enough to form a black hole. Usually, we also see a lot of x-ray and gamma radiation from nearby. We have also seen the changes in time and space predicted for space nearby a black hole by looking at 'line-broadening' of the radiation from iron nuclei.

Answer 5

Can and has--black holes have been observed in space. Most galaxies have large ones at their centers.

Answer 6

NASA has proved this. The Hubble found them, and they found that nothing can excape them. I beleve they sent x-rays through them and were able to see what they look like.

Answer 7

yes, it has been proven.