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First photo of a black hole supports Einstein’s theory of relativity

By Ashley Strickland | CNN | Updated 1:59 PM ET, Fri October 2, 2020

(CNN) The first image of a black hole, captured in 2019, has revealed more support for Albert Einstein’s theory of general relativity. The new finding has suggested his theory is now 500 times harder to beat.Einstein’s theory, or the idea that gravity is matter warping space-time, has persisted for a hundred years as new astronomical discoveries have been made.

Researchers from the Event Horizon Telescope collaboration, the team that imaged the central black hole of the M87 galaxy last year, analyzed the black hole’s “shadow.” Black holes don’t cast shadows in the typical sense because they aren’t solid objects that prevent light from passing through them.

Instead, black holes interact with light a little differently but create a similar effect. A black hole can pull light toward itself, and while light can’t escape the inside of a black hole, it’s possible for light to make a getaway in a region around the event horizon, or point of no return. This in-between space can look like a shadow.

Because black holes have such immense gravity, which curves space-time, it can actually act like magnifier that makes the black hole’s shadow appear larger than it is.

This is a simulation of M87's black hole showing the motion of plasma as it swirls around the black hole. The bright thin ring that can be seen in blue is the edge of what researchers call the black hole shadow. — This is a simulation of M87’s black hole showing the motion of plasma as it swirls around the black hole. The bright thin ring that can be seen in blue is the edge of what researchers call the black hole shadow.

The research team measured this distortion and found that the size of this black hole’s shadow aligns with the theory of relativity — or matter warping space-time to create gravity.

The study published Thursday in the journal Physical Review Letters.“This is really just the beginning. We have now shown that it is possible to use an image of a black hole to test the theory of gravity,” said Lia Medeiros, study co-author and postdoctoral fellow at the Institute for Advanced Study in New Jersey, in a statement. “This test will be even more powerful once we image the black hole in the center of our own galaxy and in future EHT observations with additional telescopes that are being added to the array.”

It’s an extreme test of gravity, here at the edge of a supermassive black hole, when compared with previous gravity tests like the detection of gravitational waves or ripples in space-time or even the displacement of starlight witnessed during the 1919 solar eclipse.

This visualization, including the first image of a black hole, shows the new gauge developed to test the predictions of modified gravity theories against the measurement of the size of the M87 shadow.

The black hole in this study is 6.5 billion times more massive than our sun, whereas the gravitational wave detectors on Earth monitor black holes that are five to several dozen times the mass of the sun.

This range helps further the understanding of the properties of black holes, both the visible aspects and their invisible structures.

“Using the gauge we developed, we showed that the measured size of the black hole shadow in M87 tightens the wiggle room for modifications to Einstein’s theory of general relativity by almost a factor of 500, compared to previous tests in the solar system,” said Feryal Özel, study coauthor and University of Arizona astrophysics professor, in a statement. “Many ways to modify general relativity fail at this new and tighter black hole shadow test.”

Now that researchers know they can use images of black holes to test the theory of gravity, it opens up more possibilities for the future.

“Together with gravitational-wave observations, this marks the beginning of a new era in black hole astrophysics,” said Dimitrios Psaltis, lead study author and University of Arizona astrophysics professor, in a statement.

While the theory of relativity has passed all of the tests thrown at it so far, further study is needed to confirm whether it continues to match up with astrophysical objects

“For the first time we have a different gauge by which we can do a test that’s 500 times better, and that gauge is the shadow size of a black hole,” Özel said. “When we obtain an image of the black hole at the center of our own galaxy, then we can constrain deviations from general relativity even further.”

Putting the Squeeze on General Relativity

Analyzing the first image of a black hole in a nearby galaxy, researchers have provided quantitative tests of general relativity in the strongest gravitational fields yet.

October 1, 2020 | Physics 13, s128

In 2019, the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) released the first image of a giant black hole in the nearby galaxy M87. Revealing a circular shadow whose diameter was within 17% of predictions, the measurement provided a qualitative confirmation of general relativity while still leaving room for alternative theories of gravity. Now, a more detailed analysis by the EHT Collaboration shows that the shadow’s shape can provide quantitative constraints on these alternative models. The work represents a test of Einstein’s theory in strong-field regimes that have never been explored [1].

General relativity has passed countless tests with flying colors. Most tests have been performed under the weak gravitational fields found within our Solar System. However, deviations from relativity might only appear in stronger gravity. LIGO and Virgo’s recent observations of black hole mergers have probed stronger-field regimes, showing that the theory holds in the curved spacetime of black holes as heavy as about 150 Suns. With M87, which is over six billion times heavier than the Sun, the researchers have extended these tests to a radically different spacetime.

Considering two distinct alternative models of gravity, the team found that the models’ respective deviations from relativity in strong fields would show up in the same parameters. These parameters—appearing in approximations of Newtonian gravity that account for observed relativistic effects—are directly related to the shadow’s shape (as the researchers explain in a video). Using this information, the researchers calculated constraints on deviations from relativity that are comparable in magnitude to those derived from gravitational-wave tests. Once EHT releases the image of Sagittarius A*—the black hole at our Galaxy’s center—these constraints will become much tighter, says EHT team member Dimitrios Psaltis of the University of Arizona.

Correction (2 October 2020): The text was updated to describe the spacetime around M87 as “radically different” from the spacetime around the Sun instead of “more radically warped.”

–Matteo Rini

Matteo Rini is the Deputy Editor of Physics.

References

D. Psaltis et al., “Gravitational test beyond the first post-Newtonian order with the shadow of the M87 black hole,” Phys. Rev. Lett. 125, 141104 (2020).

GLT Visit

In October 2019, undergraduate student Dalton Glove and Dimitrios Psaltis (Arizona) traveled to Thule, Greenland with Satoki Matsushita, Derek Kubo (ASIAA), and Nimesh Patel (SAO) to collect existing weather and radiometer data as well as install scripts to upload automatically future data on the online PIRE weather database.

The ASIAA+SAO members focused on holographic measurements
of the GLT surface and all worked on installing scripts for monitoring remotely the condition of the Maser on site).

See images from Thule and the GLT here.

$3M Breakthrough Prize Goes to Black Hole Hunters Including UA Astrophysicists

Dimitrios Pslatis, EHT project scientist, and Feryal Ozel, lead of the modeling analysis working group, are two of several University of Arizona researchers who contributed to the Event Horizon Telescope project, which was awarded the Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics. (Photo: Bob Demers/UANews)

The Event Horizon Telescope collaboration, which included several University of Arizona researchers and students, received a prestigious award for producing the first image of a supermassive black hole, taken by means of an Earth-sized alliance of telescopes.

By Daniel Stolte | University Communications | Sept. 5, 2019

Researchers from the University of Arizona are named in a collaboration that will receive the 2020 Breakthrough Prize, also known as the “Oscars of Science.” Considered the world’s most generous science prize, each Breakthrough Prize comes with $3 million in prize money.

Dimitrios Psaltis, Feryal Ozel, Chi-kwan Chan and Dan Marrone are part of the Event Horizon Telescope project, which was just awarded the 2020 Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics for capturing the first-ever photo of a black hole in space.

The result of years of international collaboration, the EHT offers scientists a new way to study the most extreme objects in the universe. Until the EHT’s historic photo, the existence of black holes had only been inferred from Einstein’s Theory of General Relativity and other measurements, but never directly observed.

The prize money will be split equally among all the members of the Event Horizon Telescope, or EHT, collaboration who co-authored the initial discovery, which was published on April 10 in six scientific papers.

The University of Arizona has 36 researchers, students and telescope support staff contributing to the EHT project that created the first image of the black hole, including:

Dimitrios Pslatis, the EHT project scientist;
Feryal Ozel, lead of the modeling analysis working group;
Chi-kwan Chan, leader of the computations and software working group;
Dan Marrone, one of the four leads who announced the first image; and,
21 UA students, who were involved in the project at the time the image was released.

The UA also managed two of the eight telescopes involved in gathering the data that resulted in the image of the supermassive black hole in the center of M87, a galaxy in the Virgo galaxy cluster 55 million light-years from Earth.

On April 10, EHT researchers revealed the first direct visual evidence of the supermassive black hole in the center of Messier 87 and its shadow. (Image: EHT Collaboration)

“A huge congratulations to all the Event Horizon Telescope contributors for this outstanding award,” said UA President Robert C. Robbins. “The University of Arizona community is incredibly proud of the longstanding tradition of leadership in astronomy and space exploration, and it is fitting that Dimitrios Psaltis, Feryal Ozel, Chi-kwan Chan, Dan Marrone, and many UA students were involved with this collaborative international project. The first ever picture of a black hole is a fantastic triumph of human endeavor, and I am thrilled to see it recognized with the Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics.”

The Breakthrough Prize Foundation and its founding sponsors – Sergey Brin, Priscilla Chan and Mark Zuckerberg, Ma Huateng, Yuri and Julia Milner, and Anne Wojcicki – together are awarding a collective $21.6 million through the 2020 Breakthrough Prize and 2020 New Horizons Prize in recognition of important achievements in the life sciences, fundamental physics, and mathematics.

This year’s winners are credited with discoveries that address important and compelling scientific questions, from “Why do chilis taste hot?” and “What are the causes of neurodegenerative disease?” to “What does a black hole look like?”

Taking a direct image of the black hole in M87 is a feat that would not have been possible a decade ago. Even though the object is about the size of our solar system, it is so far away that resolving its features across 55 million light-years is like “taking a picture of a doughnut placed on the surface of the moon,” according to EHT Project Scientist Dimitrios Psaltis, a professor of astronomy and physics at the University of Arizona.

Now in its eighth year, the Breakthrough Prize annually recognizes achievements in the life sciences, fundamental physics and mathematics, disciplines that ask the biggest questions and seek the deepest explanations.

The new laureates will be recognized at the eighth annual Breakthrough Prize gala awards ceremony on November 3 at the NASA Ames Research Center in Mountain View, California, and broadcast live on National Geographic. Each year, the program has a theme, and this year’s topic – “Seeing the Invisible” – is inspired by the Event Horizon Telescope collaboration, which created the first image of a black hole, as well as the broader power of science and mathematics to reveal hidden, uncharted worlds.

Although the Breakthrough citation included only the 347 people listed as authors on the first six papers, there are even more people who contributed to the success of the endeavor. The full contingent of University of Arizona EHT participants is as follows: researchers Chi-Kwan Chan, Pierre Christian, Tod Lauer (NOAO research staff), Dan Marrone, Feryal Ozel, Dimitrios Psaltis, Buell Jannuzi and Lucy Ziurys; graduate students David Ball, Junhan Kim (graduated 2019), Lia Medeiros (graduated 2019), Carolyn Raithel, Mel Rose, Arash Roshanineshat, Kaushik Satapathy and Tyler Trent; current and former undergraduates Joseph Allen, Devin Cameron, Elizabeth Champagne, Landen Conway, Ryan Gatski, Dalton Glove, Yuan Jea Hew, Kyle Massingill, Kaylah McGowan, Jose Perez, Will Price, Gustavo Rodriguez, Anthony Schlecht and Alexis Tinoco; and Steward Observatory staff Patrick Fimbres, Thomas Folkers, David Forbes, Robert Freund, Christopher Greer, Christian Holmstedt, Gene Lauria, Martin McColl, Robert Moulton and George Reiland.

Link to original article here.

2020 Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics Awarded to the Event Horizon Telescope Collaboration

WINNERS OF THE 2020 BREAKTHROUGH PRIZE IN LIFE SCIENCES, FUNDAMENTAL PHYSICS AND MATHEMATICS ANNOUNCED

September 5, 2019 – (San Francisco) – The Breakthrough Prize Foundation and its founding sponsors – Sergey Brin, Priscilla Chan and Mark Zuckerberg, Ma Huateng, Yuri and Julia Milner, and Anne Wojcicki – today announced the recipients of the 2020 Breakthrough Prize and 2020 New Horizons Prize, awarding a collective $21.6 million in recognition of important achievements in the Life Sciences, Fundamental Physics, and Mathematics.

Now in its eighth year, the Breakthrough Prize, known as the “Oscars of Science,” annually recognizes achievements in the Life Sciences, Fundamental Physics and Mathematics, disciplines that ask the biggest questions and seek the deepest explanations. Considered the world’s most generous science prize, each Breakthrough Prize is $3 million.

This year’s winners are credited with discoveries that address important and compelling scientific questions – from “What does a black hole look like?” to “Why do chilis taste hot?” and “What are the causes of neurodegenerative disease?”

As a collective, this year’s Breakthrough Prize laureates probed the galaxies to capture the first image of a black hole; imagined gravity at the quantum level; laid the foundation for non-opioid analgesics to extinguish chronic pain; established the biological basis of how much we eat and weigh; and discovered common mechanisms underlying neurodegenerative disorders, including early-onset dementia. Full citations can be found below.

In addition, six New Horizons Prizes were awarded to twelve scientists recognizing early-career achievements in physics and mathematics. Full citations can be found below.

The new laureates will be recognized at the eighth annual Breakthrough Prize gala awards ceremony on Sunday, November 3, at NASA Ames Research Center in Mountain View, California, and broadcast live on National Geographic. Each year, the program has a theme, and this year’s topic – “Seeing the Invisible” – is inspired by the Event Horizon Telescope collaboration, which created the first image of a black hole, as well as the broader power of science and mathematics to reveal hidden, uncharted worlds.

Author: dpsaltis3