Scientists Are 99 Percent Sure They Just Detected a Black Hole Eating a Neutron Star

An anonymous reader quotes a report from Motherboard: On Wednesday, a gravitational wave called S190814bv was detected by the U.S.-based Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) and its Italian counterpart Virgo. Based on its known properties, scientists think there is a 99% probability that the source of the wave is a black hole that ate a neutron star. In contrast to black hole mergers, neutron star collisions do produce a lot of light. When a gravitational wave from a neutron star crash was detected in 2017, scientists were able to pinpoint bright emissions from the event -- called an optical counterpart -- in the days that followed the wave detection. This marked the dawn of a technique called "multi-messenger astronomy," in which scientists use multiple types of signals from space to examine astronomical objects.

Ryan Foley, an astronomer at UC Santa Cruz, was part of the team that tracked down that first optical counterpart, a feat that has not yet been repeated. He and his colleagues are currently scanning the skies with telescopes, searching for any light that might have been radiated by the new suspected merger of a black hole and neutron star. If the team were to pick up light from the event within the coming weeks, they would be witnessing the fallout of a black hole spilling a neutron star's guts while devouring it. This would provide a rare glimpse of the exotic properties of these extreme astronomical objects and could shed light on everything from subatomic physics to the expansion rate of the universe. "We've never detected a neutron star and a black hole together," said Foley. "If it turns out to be right, then we've confirmed a new type of star system. It's that fundamental." He added: "If you learn about how neutron stars are built, that can tell you about how atoms are built. This is something that is fundamental to everything in our daily life works."

Re:

[Bernie + + Sandurz]

Because BeauHD believes in science, that's why.

And you wanna know something else? We're gonna expand the NASA budget 10 fold when Bernie gets into office in 2020.

Re: WDTM

[Way Smarter Than You]

NASA? 10x budget? Why feed that dinosaur? $5 says Bernie isn't even the nominee for the DNC. 50/50 he runs independent.

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[stealth_finger]

Because we want out fucking space force already! Gotta get out there and stop them space pirates!

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[MBGMorden]

Doubtful. There's a better chance he'd cannibalize the budget and shut NASA down to fund social programs. We

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[JaredOfEuropa]

In Soviet Russia, neutron star eats you. And everywhere else too, come to think of it.

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[AHuxley]

Its real science again after the fun of solar roads and the physics of iceberg subs.
With the space race between experts from the USA and Italy.
Get to see who has the better equipment. Who can use what better deeper in space for longer.
What system gets better astronomy done over a generation?
Italy and the EU?
The USA?

Re:WDTM

[stealth_finger]

Why Does This Matter?

You Matter, unless you times by the speed of light squared, then you energy.

Not a lens flare

[Kohath]

99% sure it's not a lens flare

Not even a lens

[Roger W Moore]

It was not observed using light but via gravitational waves. LIGO is essentially a collection of insanely accurate interferometers. The event was detected because the gravitational waves it emitted lengthened one arm of the interfermoeter and contracted the other alternatively as it passed through their detector.

Re:Not even a lens

[burtosis]

LIGO is only a two axis sensor, so if the waves come in at just the right angle (pun intended) it's possible to only experience the distance changes on one axis. By measuring both axis you can narrow down where the signal came from but there is large uncertainty. That's why it's important to have another facility located far away off axis so you can narrow it down and know where to look using light based telescopes.

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[Sique]

Actually, LIGO has two two-axis sensors, 3000 km apart from each other. With VIRGO as third two-axis sensor, you actually get a clue about the direction the gravitational wave came from.

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[Roger W Moore]

LIGO is only a two axis sensor

That is incorrect. As I said it is a collection of, currently, two such sensors, one in Washington State and the other in Louisiana and they have plans to build more, IIRC one in India, to improve sensitivity as well as coordinating with other detectors such as VIRGO.

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[epine]

That is incorrect. As I said it is a collection of, currently, two such sensors, one in Washington State and the other in Louisiana and they have plans to build more, IIRC one in India, to improve sensitivity as well as coordinating with other detectors such as VIRGO.

That is incorrect.

As I said, it is a collection of, currently, two such sensors, one in Washington State and the other in Louisiana, presently working—as I did not originally say (but should have)—in such tight coordination with VIR

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[Roger W Moore]

Really? [caltech.edu]

Re:Not even a lens

[quenda]

LIGO is essentially a collection of insanely accurate interferometers.

That is putting it mildly. LIGO uses a laser with a 1 micrometre wavelength to measure changes of 10^-19 metres (1/10,000th of a proton width).
Like measuring the size of a grain of sand using the plant Jupiter as a yardstick. "insanely accurate" does not come close. It does something that is obviously impossible without witchcraft.

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[MiniMike]

Like measuring the size of a grain of sand using the plant Jupiter as a yardstick.

You misspelled Juniper [wikipedia.org].

It does something that is obviously impossible without witchcraft.

This implies that we finally have sufficiently advanced technology [wikipedia.org].

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[account_deleted]

Comment removed based on user account deletion

Sufficiently Advanced Technology

[Roger W Moore]

It does something that is obviously impossible without witchcraft.

No, it is just sufficiently advanced technology [wikipedia.org].

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[The Snazster]

Not with that big burp at the end.

Simulation

[Tablizer]

Here's an animated simulation [youtube.com]

Well, okay, here's a better one this time. [youtube.com]

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[quenda]

Here's an animated simulation [youtube.com]

Well, okay, here's a better one this time. [youtube.com]

Oh well, at least it was not a goatse this time.

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[UnknowingFool]

All, as it is not a race. The collaboration of all three locations: two LIGO locations and the Virgo one helps locate the source of the collision. When two neutron stars collided in 2017 [wikipedia.org], the three pinpointed where it was, and some 4,000 astronomers representing 900 institutions and using 70 observatories were able to capture the event before it faded.

Om nom nom nom

[Stubbyfingers]

URP!

cut a brotha some slack

[trb]

black hole's gotta eat, yo.

Recycling universe

[Scott Johnston]

One has to wonder if everything entering a black hole which then becomes a point of singularity, ultimately becomes a new Big Bang followed by a new universe on the other side. Maybe it happens in perpetuity infinitely. In other words, a black hole eats up everything including other black holes until the whole universe is sucked in and then it starts a new Big Bang to start the process all over again. We can only see back as far as the Big Bang that started our present universe. Each new Big Bang may or may