Black holes are the most complex and destructive celestial objects found in our Universe . Its gravity is so powerful that it can swallow anything, but now it is even possible to observe what happens not far from its “hidden side” by exploiting the incredible deformation of space, since for the first time a group of scientists has managed to observe light that exists behind a black hole.
Light behind a black hole seen for the first time
In the fields where black holes are found, the gravitational interaction is so powerful that it bends space itself, without even letting light escape. However, although light cannot escape the “suction” of a black hole , it is possible that various electromagnetic emissions are ejected towards the neighboring area (especially from the poles of the black body), thus allowing astronomers to observe for the first time the strange phenomenon that they themselves define as the “echo” of light from a black hole.
As the scientists have explained, this event is observable from the “hidden side” of the black hole , which is the exact opposite of our point of view. The celestial object of about 10 million solar masses, the protagonist of the sensational discovery, is located in the spiral galaxy I Zwicky 1, 800 million light years from Earth. The discovery would confirm the theory of general relativity.
The observation that has now become known and that was published in the journal Nature by a group of researchers from Stanford University, was made by the XMM-Newton space telescopes of ESA and NuStar of NASA: thanks to these observatories specialized, it was possible to intercept very extreme X-ray flares coming from the black hole . In particular, the team of scientists has not limited themselves to observing this electromagnetic source, but has also captured how it “bounces” off the twisted gases and how it deforms at the “backside” of the black hole .
The research, led by Dan Wilkins of Stanford University, focused on investigating the black hole’s corona when X-photon reverberations were noticed during the observation. What caught the researchers’ attention is that, for the first time, these flashes of light seemed to come, quite unexpectedly, from behind the black hole.
By observing the travel of light around the back of the cosmic heart of darkness, researchers hope to understand more about what happens when one is so close to certain gravitational vortices. Following this groundbreaking study, the research team aims to create a 3D map of the black hole’s surroundings , with unmatched precision.
