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Everyday we look out upon the night sky, wondering and dreaming of what lies
beyond our planet. The universe that we live in is so diverse and unique, and
it interests us to learn about all the variance that lies beyond our grasp.
Within this marvel of wonders our universe holds a mystery that is very
difficult to understand because of the complications that arise when trying to
examine and explore the principles of space. That mystery happens to be that
of the ever clandestine, black hole. This essay will hopefully give you the
knowledge and understanding of the concepts, properties, and processes
involved with the space phenomenon of the black hole. It will describe how a
black hole is generally formed, how it functions, and the effects it has on
the universe.
In order to understand what exactly a black hole is, we must first take a look
at the basis for the cause of a black hole. All black holes are formed from
the gravitational collapse of a star, usually having a great, massive, core. A
star is created when huge, gigantic, gas clouds bind together due to
attractive forces and form a hot core, combined from all the energy of the two
gas clouds. This energy produced is so great when it first collides, that a
nuclear reaction occurs and the gases within the star start to burn
continuously. The Hydrogen gas is usually the first type of gas consumed in a
star and then other gas elements such as Carbon, Oxygen, and Helium are
consumed. This chain reaction fuels the star for millions or billions of years
depending upon the amount of gases there are.
The star manages to avoid collapsing at this point because of the equilibrium
achieved by itself. The gravitational pull from the core of the star is equal
to the gravitational pull of the gases forming a type of orbit, however when
this equality is broken the star can go into several different stages. Usually
if the star is small in mass, most of the gases will be consumed while some of
it escapes. This occurs because there is not a tremendous gravitational pull
upon those gases and therefore the star weakens and becomes smaller. It is
then referred to as a White Dwarf. If the star was to have a larger mass
however, then it may possibly Supernova, meaning that the nuclear fusion
within the star simply goes out of control causing the star to explode. After
exploding a fraction of the star is usually left (if it has not turned into
pure gas) and that fraction of the star is known as a neutron star.
A black hole is one of the last option that a star may take. If the core of
the star is so massive (approximately 6-8 solar masses; one solar mass being
equal to the sun’s mass) then it is most likely that when the star’s gases are
almost consumed those gases will collapse inward, forced into the core by the
gravitational force laid upon them. After a black hole is created, the
gravitational force continues to pull in space debris and other type of
matters to help add to the mass of the core, making the hole stronger and more
powerful. Most black holes tend to be in a consistent spinning motion. This
motion absorbs various matter and spins it within the ring (known as the Event
Horizon) that is formed around the black hole. The matter keeps within the
Event Horizon until it has spun into the centre where it is concentrated
within the core adding to the mass. Such spinning black holes are known as
Kerr Black Holes.
Most black holes orbit around stars due to the fact that they once were a
star, and this may cause some problems for the neighboring stars. If a black
hole gets powerful enough it may actually pull a star into it and disrupt the
orbit of many other stars. The black hole could then grow even stronger (from
the star’s mass) as to possibly absorb another. When a black hole absorbs a
star, the star is first pulled into the Ergosphere, which sweeps all the
matter into the Event Horizon, named for it’s flat horizontal appearance and
because this happens to be the place where mostly all the action within the
black hole occurs. When the star is passed on into the Event Horizon the light
that the star endures is bent within the current and therefore cannot be seen
in space. At this exact point in time, high amounts of radiation are given
off, that with the proper equipment can be detected and seen as an image of a
black hole. Through this technique astronomers now believe that they have
found a black hole known as Cygnus X1. This supposed black hole has a huge
star orbiting around it, therefore we assume there must be a black hole that
it is in orbit with.
The first scientists to really take an in depth look at black holes and the
collapsing of stars, were a professor, Robert Oppenheimer and his student
Hartland Snyder, in the early nineteen hundreds. They concluded on the basis
of Einstein’s theory of relativity that if the speed of light was the utmost
speed over any massive object, then nothing could escape a black hole once in
it’s clutches. The name "black hole" was named such, because of the fact that
light could not escape from the gravitational pull from the core, thus making
the black hole impossible for humans to see without using technological
advancements for measuring such things like radiation. The second part of the
word was named "hole" due to the fact that the actual hole, is where
everything is absorbed and where the centre core presides. This core is the
main part of the black hole where the mass is concentrated and appears purely
black on all readings even through the use of radiation detection devices.
Just recently a major discovery was found with the help of a device known as
The Hubble Telescope. This telescope has just recently found what many
astronomers believe to be a black hole, after being focused on an star
orbiting empty space. Several picture were sent back to Earth from the
telescope showing many computer enhanced pictures of various radiation
fluctuations and other diverse types of readings that could be read from the
area in which the black hole is suspected to be in. Several diagrams were made
showing how astronomers believe that if somehow you were to survive through
the centre of the black hole that there would be enough gravitational force to
possible warp you to another end in the universe or possibly to another
universe. The creative ideas that can be hypothesized from this discovery are
endless.
Although our universe is filled with much unexplained, glorious, phenomenon,
it is our duty to continue exploring them and to continue learning, but in the
process we must not take any of it for granted. As you have read, black holes
are a major topic within our universe and they contain so much curiosity that
they could possibly hold unlimited uses. Black holes are a sensation that
astronomers are still very puzzled with. It seems that as we get closer to
solving their existence and functions, we just end up with more and more
questions. Although these questions just lead us into more and more unanswered
problems we seek and find refuge into them, dreaming that maybe one day, one
far off distant day, we will understand all the conceptions and we will be
able to use the universe to our advantage and go where only our dreams could
take us.
Science Essays
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