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But light has gravity.
Light contains energy. And energy contains Protons. Protons have no measurable mass but can be effected by outside forces like gravity.
Maybe we're just seeing an example of how E=MC2 isn't the end all and be all of Physics?
How Gravity Affects Photons
Yes!
Good stuff Martimus!
I love this kind of topic very interesting here!
Hmm but if light can be bent by a black hole then surely it must have mass?
Hmm i dunno actually my bad
According to current theory, gravity is not a function of mass. Gravity is a function of a graviton particle, which is related to the Higgs Boson particle (the particles that give things mass).
The nature of their relationship isn't exactly known, but I assume (yes, I know what that makes us all) that it's that relationship which gives us gravity's general behavior in regards to mass. However, that would explain why gravity effects light, even though light has no mass. It would have to have graviton particles.
Hmm but if light can be bent by a black hole then surely it must have mass?
Light can be refracted by more than just gravity. The path that light travels can be changed simply by introducing a reflective surface.
I've always wondered, if black holes really do exist and have the intense gravitational fields that some astronomers seem to believe, wouldn't they gather all matter including dust and debris? If a black hole is pulling in a wall of dust, couldn't that wall of dust act to reflect ambient light into the black hole giving us the belief that light is being pulled into the black hole?
Physics has lots and lots of theories... but very few facts. Given that the closest black hole is believed to be about 1600 light years from Earth (and one light year is approximately 5,865,696,000,000 miles), all of this is happening far enough away that it's difficult to see even with a telescope. For that reason I'm thinking that it's theoretically possible that the absorbtion of light may be a "trick of light" due to the fact that all matter in the vicinity of the black hole is being swallowed up by that black hole. With no matter in the area, there is nothing for the light to reflect against giving us the impression that light is also being swallowed up by the black hole.
Light can be refracted by more than just gravity. The path that light travels can be changed simply by introducing a reflective surface.
I've always wondered, if black holes really do exist and have the intense gravitational fields that some astronomers seem to believe, wouldn't they gather all matter including dust and debris? If a black hole is pulling in a wall of dust, couldn't that wall of dust act to reflect ambient light into the black hole giving us the belief that light is being pulled into the black hole?
Physics has lots and lots of theories... but very few facts. Given that the closest black hole is believed to be about 1600 light years from Earth (and one light year is approximately 5,865,696,000,000 miles), all of this is happening far enough away that it's difficult to see even with a telescope. For that reason I'm thinking that it's theoretically possible that the absorbtion of light may be a "trick of light" due to the fact that all matter in the vicinity of the black hole is being swallowed up by that black hole. With no matter in the area, there is nothing for the light to reflect against. Maybe this gives us the false impression that light is also being swallowed up by the black hole.
There are a couple of things wrong with your theory here.
1) With any given black hole, dust wouldn't be floating out at a distance, it would be pulled into the event horizon... and very quickly.
2) Black holes are called such, because light doesn't escape them. Even with dust reflection, light would likely be reflected in EVERY direction. So, we would still see light coming from black holes.
Well...nothing escapes them really, and nothing can. Sound cannot even escape it if I read something right..
Well...nothing escapes them really, and nothing can.
It really just boils down to whether you value evidence or wishful thinking. I, for one, wouldn't mind a little evidence. "Faith" is just a fancier term for hoping.
There are a couple of things wrong with your theory here.
Not true.
Nothing in the form it was in as it entered a black hole can escape in that same form. However black holes lose mass, thus something that was in there escapes and leaves behind less mass.
Ah! right, thats true..I left out that part.
So something that goes into a black hole but yet escapes(how..exactly?) is basically not what it once was correct?
Understanding the beginning of time isn't going to prevent you from dieing. So why waste your time?
Thanks but until I get a PHD in theoretical physics I really don't think my musings qualify as a theory.
My point was, and is, that so very little is truly known about black holes... even their existance is more myth than fact. The longest range telescopes currently in use are, I believe, radio telescopes. Radio telescopes are glorified radio receivers with giant directional antennas. Much of the information on black holes is derived from the fact that no radio emissions are being received by certain spots in deep space.
And it's not radio waves that we are looking for, but X-rays.
Lets not quibble. You are correct but, then again, radio waves and x-rays share the same electromagnetic spectrum. They are simply at different frequencies/wavelengths.
IMO one of the challenges in Astronomy today is that watching black holes could be compared with watching rats on the street from the observation deck at the Empire State Building. You may see them but not with a tremendous level of detail. That's why Astronomers are slow to announce discoveries. They want to make absolutely sure of what they see before they make their discovery public.
After decades of reading about these things, learned scientists expressing opposing views on that subject still do not fail to intrigue me.
I think Mr Hawkins is a brilliant man and could only wish I had a tenth of his intellect . That being said do you think he is given special treatment than others because he is in a wheelchair and has a medical condition. You think he would be taken as seriously if he was able to walk and talk and be a healthy human being.