May 21, 2015

When Black Holes Collide

When supermassive black holes run into each other, the fabric of space and time gets a little bit wrinkled.

Join Our Community of Science Lovers!

What do you think happens when two black holes meet?

This is Scientific American’s 60-Second Science. I’m Clara Moskowitz. Got a minute?

When two supermassive black holes get near each other, their gravity draws them closer and closer. Gravity also pulls in a doughnut-shaped disk of gas from the surrounding galaxy. This gas heats up and radiates jets of light we can see from across the universe. These jets are the most luminous objects in the sky.

On supporting science journalism

If you're enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing. By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today.

As the black holes circle in toward each other, their magnetic fields, shown in white, become intertwined.

Eventually, when the two supermassive objects get close enough, they suddenly plunge toward each other and fuse into one larger black hole.

The merger releases not just a torrent of light but also gravitational waves that spiral outward and warp the entire fabric of space and time.

Scientists hope one day soon to capture one of these waves, which might reveal secrets about the nature of gravity and the fundamental workings of the universe.

Thanks for the minute! For Scientific American, I’m Clara Moskowitz.

—Eliene Augenbraun and Clara Moskowitz

Credits:

Multicolor animations by Stuart Shapiro, University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign

Chandra black hole image: X-ray: NASA/CXC/Univ of Michigan/R.C.Reis et al; Optical: NASA/STScI

Subscribe to Support Independent Journalism

Great science journalism requires human expertise, time, effort and creativity. And it costs money. That’s why I and the journalists here at Scientific American hope you’ll join our community.

When you subscribe, you are supporting staff and freelance journalists who are passionate about telling science stories that are true, important and compelling. Our editors and reporters are often experts in their fields, which means they understand the nuances of big discoveries and can untangle the breakthroughs from the hype. With a subscription, you are also supporting rigorous fact-checking to ensure the words we publish are precise and accurate. And you’re supporting original illustrations, graphics and photos that bring you closer to an advanced laboratory, an ice sheet in Antarctica or a space mission in orbit. You’re helping us craft other types of high-quality journalism as well: Our newsletters are carefully written, edited and curated by staffers you have or will come to know and love. Our Science Quickly podcast is based on original reporting, collaboration with editors and scientists and exacting production.

Subscriptions keep this engine running so we can continue to deliver thoughtful, rigorous and independent science journalism to you. In an era of viral misinformation, this work is crucial. If you value what we do, I hope you’ll consider joining us as a subscriber

Thank you,

Jeanna Bryner, Editor in Chief, Scientific American