Everyone knows that black holes' gravitational pulls are so strong that not even light can escape; However, the actual physics of a black hole is never considered, leaving people to make assumptions about what they really are! Despite their terrifying name, black holes aren't holes at all! The matter that makes up a black hole is packed so tight below the surface that the matter can't escape, as predicted by Einstein's theory of relativity. But no need to panic! Just because you spotted a black hole doesn't mean it's too late. Unfortunately, once you enter the event horizon, the point of no return, it may be too late for you I fear.
Life Cycle of a Black Hole
Black holes are born when super massive stars collapse at the end of their lives, a process call gravitational collapse, when the stars can no longer handle their own weight. Although this may sound terrifying condsidering our Sun is a star, our Sun is not nearly dense enough to become a black hole! Despite popular belief, black holes do NOT live forever. Although it may feel like they live forever, they die at some point! The lifespan of a black hole depends on the mass, M, of the black hole. They emit a type of raditation called Hawking radiation which causes them to slowly die as time continues. Some black holes may have already died but we won't know until the light reaches our Earth! The oldest black hole is 13 billion years old, named CAPERS-LRD-z9. It formed 500 million years after the big bang and was discovered by the James Webb Telescope on August 6, 2025.The black hole first discovered was identified in 1971 by Paul Murdin and Lousie Webster. Though the signs were first discovered in 1964, Cygnus X-1 was confirmed in 1971.