Hawking’s controversial theory can be evaluated with the help of the James Webb Space Telescope
New research suggests that we may soon have one of the most controversial theories Stephen Hawking To test. In the 1970s, Hawking suggested that dark matter, the invisible matter that makes up the bulk of the universe, may have originated from black holes formed in the first moments after the Big Bang.
پریاموادا ناتاراجان“Yale University astrophysicists, one of the study’s authors, said in a statement:
I think the exciting thing about this idea is how it really integrates and responds to two challenging issues, the study of the nature of dark matter and the formation of black holes, at the same time. In addition, new instruments, including the recently launched James Webb Space Telescope, can provide the data needed to make a final assessment of Hawking’s well-known theory.
Black holes from the beginning of the universe
Dark matter, along with dark energy, makes up more than 80 percent of the universe. However, it does not interact with light in any way, it only has mass and it affects the gravity inside the galaxies. It is tempting to say that black holes can solve the mystery of dark matter. Given that black holes are very dark, in theory, “filling a galaxy with a black hole” could justify all observations of dark matter.
According to current knowledge, black holes form only after the death of heavy stars. It then collapses under the force of its own gravity. Hence, normal matter is needed to form a black hole into a star and, consequently,; The material we have dealt with so far. Scientists know the amount of normal matter in the universe by calculating the first universe, where the first hydrogen and helium formed. It is easy to see that there is not enough ordinary matter to produce all the dark matter that astronomers have observed so far.
Sleeping Giants
This is where Hawking enters the field. In 1971, he stated that black holes formed in the chaotic environment of the first moments of the Big Bang. Under those conditions, matter masses could spontaneously reach the density needed to form a black hole and immerse the universe in a mass of black holes before the first stars were born.
Hawking noted that “early black holes” may have a significant relationship with dark matter; But despite this intriguing idea, most astrophysicists were looking for a new subatomic particle to explain dark matter instead of focusing on it.
In addition, the models for the formation of the first black hole posed a major challenge. If many of them formed in the early universe; So they must have changed the residual radiation from the early universe, which is called cosmic background radiation (CMB). This means that this theory can only work if the number and size of primary black holes are relatively limited; Otherwise, it conflicts with CMB measurements.
The idea came to the fore again in 2015; When the Gravitational Wave Observatory first detected the collision of a pair of black holes with a laser interferometer. A pair of black holes that were much heavier than expected, and one way to justify their mass was that they must have formed in the first days of the universe; Not in the heart of dying stars.
A simple solution
In the latest research, Natarajan along Niko Caploti From the University of Miami and Günter Hassinger At the European Space Agency, they studied the theory of the first black holes. In this study, they sought to find a solution to how dark matter and other cosmic challenges are explained.
For current observational experiments to work properly, the mass of the original black holes must be within a certain range. In this study, the researchers assumed that the mass of the first black holes was about 1.4 times that of the Sun. In the model presented by these researchers, all the dark matter in the universe has been replaced by these black holes. They then sought clues in their observations to confirm or reject their proposed model.
James Webb Space Telescope with LISA to provide important data for discovering the origin of the universe
The researchers found that early black holes could play an important role in the universe by sowing the seeds of the first stars and the first galaxies and the first super-heavy black holes. Observations show that the “emergence” of super-heavy stars, galaxies, and black holes in the history of cosmology is very rapid; Much faster than man, with his present and little knowledge, can carefully examine how.
Natarajan said about this:
If primordial black holes exist, they can be thought of as seeds from which all supermassive black holes, including the black hole at the center of the Milky Way, originated. This theory is simple and does not require a mass of new subatomic particles to explain dark matter.
Caplotti said in a statement:
Our study shows that the mysteries of modern cosmology, from the nature of dark matter to the origin of supermassive black holes, can be deciphered without the introduction of a new particle or new physics.
Laser Interference Space Antenna (LISA)
So far, this idea is just a model; But its accuracy can be tested soon. The James Webb Space Telescope, recently launched after years of delays, is specifically designed to answer questions about the origin of stars and galaxies.
The next generation of gravitational wave detectors, especially the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA), is being prepared to collect more data about black holes, including early black holes. Future collaborations between the James Webb Space Telescope and LISA will provide astronomers with enough information to finally decipher the mystery of the origin of the first stars and the origin of dark matter.
Source link
