In a new video recently released by NASA, it well visualizes the slow spiral process of black holes swallowing stars The video aims to show the best-known black hole system. In the video, NASA shows multiple systems, one of which is involved in the gravity of the black hole. This is a stark reminder of the lethality of these iconic celestial entities.
These are the best known black holes discovered so far
NASA's video shows a series of the best-known black holes discovered so far. Including Cygnus X-1, is one of the earliest celestial systems considered to be black holes. It lies 7200 light-years away and has an orbital period of 5.6 days. But unlike other systems, this system's black hole is also orbiting the star while swallowing it.
Other visualizations in the video show that black holes in other systems are swallowing it as they rotate around the star. Such as a0620-00, this is the closest known accretion black hole system. The system has a spectacular visual effect, that is, when the black hole absorbs mass and energy from it, a star is pulled into water droplets. The black hole is only 3300 light-years away from the earth. Its star is only a little smaller than our sun.
Of course, the visual effect of black holes swallowing stars is greater than the actual situation. This is because NASA scaled its sphere to reflect the mass of each black hole. Although we have seen images of black hole eruptions in the past, this video gives a good overview of some famous black holes and helps us better understand how they feed on the stars around them.
How do black holes devour stars
NASA says black holes have two main ways to draw energy from the stars around them. The first way can be seen in the visual diagram of a0620-00 I mentioned earlier. In this image, NASA depicts a star in the shape of a water droplet to show that energy is pulled directly into the black hole as the black hole devours the star.
Other black holes devour stars through dense stellar winds. Cygnus X-1 is a good example of this. As shown in the picture, the black hole does not actually pull the star itself. Instead, it builds its own mass by the stellar wind flowing out of the star. These two visual images are very eye-catching, which can give people a better understanding of how black holes devour stars.
Black holes have long been a controversial issue in the scientific community, especially when we humans try to learn more about them. Earlier this year, scientists created a model that allows people to understand the interior of black holes.