Elusive Intermediate-mass Black Holes Take Bites From Stars and Expel the Contents
According to space experts, there is a possibility of the existence of intermediate-mass black holes. These are black holes that can consume some of the stray stars and then eject their remnants throughout the galaxy.
Different Black Holes
Black holes come in various types. One kind is formed when a supernova implodes, resulting in a stellar remnant black hole that has a mass of about 3 to 10 times that of our Sun. On the opposite side of the range are supermassive black holes, which reside at the heart of galaxies and can be millions to billions of times more massive than our Sun. Intermediate-mass black holes are believed to fall somewhere in the middle, with a mass of 10 to 10,000 times greater than that of stellar remnant black holes but far less massive than supermassive black holes.
Although there is no concrete evidence to support the existence of intermediate-mass black holes, scientists have utilized new 3D computer simulations to create models of how these black holes might behave when in close proximity to neighboring stars. This analysis will be useful in identifying intermediate-mass black holes.
The computer simulations involved black holes of different sizes and examined their potential to fling stars that are similar in size to our Sun. The results showed that when a star comes into the gravitational pull of an intermediate-mass black hole, it initially becomes trapped in the black hole’s orbit.
Black Hole Ingesting a star
Afterward, the black hole initiates the procedure of ingesting the star. As the star completes its orbits around the black hole, the black hole gradually captures some of its substance, which the researchers compare to consuming the star with each passage. Ultimately, only the distorted and exceptionally dense core of the star remains. At this stage, the black hole expels the remnants, and the star’s leftover core is propelled out into the galaxy.
In addition, the scientists at Northwestern University found out that stars could orbit a black hole up to five times, shedding mass during each orbit before being expelled back into the galaxy. As the star loses mass, it becomes brighter, resulting in a flaring signal. Astronomers could utilize this signal to potentially detect intermediate-mass black holes.
Fulya Kıroğlu, the primary investigator, stated that since black holes do not emit light, they cannot be observed directly. Hence, researchers must focus on the interactions between black holes and their surroundings. The team discovered that stars undergo multiple orbits around the black hole before being expelled, losing more mass with each rotation, and generating a burst of light as they are torn apart. With every outburst being brighter than the previous one, this creates a distinct pattern that astronomers can use to locate intermediate-mass black holes.
The findings were presented to the American Physical Society’s (APS) April 2023 meeting, with the presentation titled: “Tidal disruption events of stars by intermediate-mass black holes”.
Read The Original Article on Sci-news.
Read more: How Supermassive Fuel-Hungry Black Holes Feed off Intergalactic Gas.
