Scientists from the Indian Space Research Organization’s AstroSat and NASA’s Chandra X-Ray Observatory believe that the discovery of this black hole may add significantly to understanding how galaxies are formed in the universe.
An international team of astronomers has confirmed the discovery of a black hole which spins very close to the limit set by Albert Einstein’s theory of relativity, which means that it spins close to the speed of light, according to Business Insider.
The black hole was first tracked in the binary stellar system 4U 1630−47 in 2016 by the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO)’s AstroSat, in coordination with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)’s Chandra X-ray Observatory.
Researchers then used the X-ray data from AstroSat and Chandra to calculate that the black hole is spinning a rate of 0.9, which is close to the celestial object’s maximum possible rate of 1.
In this context, Business Insider quoted Rodrigo Nemmen, one of the lead authors of the research, as saying that Einstein’s theory of relativity “further implies that if a black hole is spinning that fast, then it is capable of making space itself rotate.”
Another lead author, Mayukh Pahari, said in turn that the spin rate is a tricky task which “can be done only by high-quality X-ray observations in the correct state of the binary stellar system, in which the black hole is a gobbling matter from its companion star.”
Astronomers said that the discovery of the black hole, which is only one of five having an accurately measured high spin rate, may contribute greatly to uncovering the truth about the origin of the Universe.
Sourse: sputniknews.com
