Imagine you are a scientist working for NASA monitoring space activity, and you see something unusual on your monitor. You notice bright flashes of light on the screen. Concerned, you look around with your telescope and see broken fragments of a star being pulled towards something you can’t see. What does this mean? Are aliens coming towards Earth? Is a meteor tearing through space? You quickly call over your team of astronomers and they tell you to stop panicking; it’s just a black hole. Just a black hole, you think in fear for your life. If you are scared of black holes like this theoretical scientist, you are not alone. This fear of these bottomless pits stems from sci-fi movies sucking up space travelers into alternate universes and the unknown. However, scientists and astronomers know a lot about black holes that will ease your mind. After reading these facts on black holes, you will have more knowledge and less fear about these fascinating objects.

A black hole’s strong gravitational field is a celestial trap

Black holes are celestial bodies like the planets and the Sun or moon. However, they possess a very extreme gravitational force, so anything in its path is bound to be trapped without an escape route. Because they are solar bodies, they follow the same gravitational laws, spinning and rotating.

Every black hole has an event horizon, a boundary or borderline distinguishing the core of the black hole where the gravitational force is at its peak and faster and stronger than the speed of light. Within the core, matter and every other element are broken down to its smallest point because of the extent of the gravitational force. You do not want to get close to one of these.