Physician legend Hawking: Black holes were one of his core topics (symbol image; source: Wikimedia Commons – John Cairns, Adobe Stock – James Thew)
A formula is engraved on Stephen Hawking's grave. It is intended to calculate when a black hole goes in an explosion – but proof was considered unavoidable for us.
Now it may be different and we have found an indication that Hawking could be right. The star of the show: the most energy -rich neutrino that we have ever measured.
This could not come from a supernova or an actively merging star as previously suspected, but rather from the moment of death of a black hole – at least that's how the theory a new study From two researchers from the renowned Cornell University from New York.
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The oldest objects in the universe
How Hawking calculated, Even the smallest black holes lose so much mass over trillion that they get to a critical point at some point. The less mass the singularity has, the faster it evaporates with the so-called Hawking radiation.
So far, however, the proof of the theory has failed to materialize, because: According to our calculations, the universe is only around 15 billion years old – so far too young to even experience the end of the lightest black hole.
Black holes, smaller than a rice grain
Why do the researchers see the neutrino mentioned at the beginning as an indication of Hawking's theory?
Presented primordial black holes: it could be tiny black holes, not greater than the head of a pin. They would have been created shortly after the Big Bang, in an extremely narrowly packed universe. Their mass would correspond to that of an asteroid.
We remember: the less mass, the shorter the lifespan of a black hole should be in Hawking.
Such a PBH (Primordial Black Hole) would now have reached age to pass according to Hawking's theory – with a silent bang in the cosmos. Therefore, the record neutrino could have been thrown away.
If so, we should know within the next few years: Because further finds of such neutrinos could underpin the theory of British genius Hawking. There are currently several new systems for finding neutrinos. If you want to know more about it, please look at the article linked above.
Stephen Hawking will unfortunately no longer experience the possible proof of his theory. The astrophysicist died in 2018 and is now located alongside British queens and kings as well as well -known poets and thinkers in the Westminster Abbey. Appropriately placed rests Hawking's ashes next to that of Sir Isaac Newton.
