A study rises to 90% the probability that we see a black hole exploit. Physicists have become nervous

At some point in the next 10 years we are probably witnessing the explosion of a black hole, according to a new model published in Physical Review Letters. In the light of the telescopes, this very powerful event has the potential to confirm the most famous theory of Stephen Hawking and give us a catalog of unknown particles of the universe.

Short. A team of theoretical physicists of the University of Massachusetts Amherst It has recalculated the probability of seeing live the violent explosion of a black hole under the assumption that there are primary black holes in hibernation.

Its conclusion is that the most potentially transformative event of modern cosmology could be just around the corner: they calculate more than 90% possibilities that we witness the explosion of a primary black hole during the next decade, under the assumptions posed by the model.

The Fat Prize for Physics. Seeing a black hole would be transformer in at least three fronts. It would be the first direct observation of the Hawking radiationthe famous theory of 1970 with which Stephen Hawking postulated that black holes losing mass slowly emitting particles, so they are not completely black.

In addition, it is believed that A black hole in evaporation emits all fundamental particles whose mass is lower than its temperature. Therefore, the explosion of a black hole should reveal from the electrons and quarks that we know, to hypothetical particles of dark matter and others completely unknown to science.

Finally, the event would confirm the primary black holes. Unlike the black holes that are formed by the collapse of mass stars, it is believed that the primordials were formed in the extreme conditions of the universe less than a second after the Big Bang. “I would completely revolutionize physics and help us rewrite the history of the universe,” says Joaquim Iguaz Juan, co -author of the study.

How a black hole explodes. The idea that black holes can explode directly derives from Hawking radiation. The theory says that the lighter a black hole, the higher its temperature and faster emits particles. This creates an uncontrolled process: as it radiates, loses mass and heats up even more. Consequently, it radiates at an increasing rate until, in its final moments, it fades into an explosion of high energy radiation (mainly gamma rays).

The problem is that, until now, physicists believed that the chances of seeing such an event were infinitesimal. These calculations, based on black holes without electric charge (black schwarzschild holes), suggested that explosions occur, at most, once every 100,000 years. With those chances, we would have to be very lucky to see one.

Where that 90% probability comes from. The researchers decided to question the departure assumption: what if the primary black holes are not electrically neutral? The new hypothesis proposes the existence of a force similar to electromagnetism, But in the dark sector: With a “dark photon” and a very heavy “dark electron”. If a primary black hole was formed with a small dark electric charge, its destination would change completely.

This mechanism works as a brake. As the black hole loses mass due to hawking radiation, its load/mass ratio increases, causing its temperature to drastically, which submits it to a state of hibernation for billions of years. After that time, the dark electric field near the horizon becomes so intense that he discharges the black hole, causing the final explosion that we have been waiting for.

Why does this increase the chances of observation? Because this long stability period allows much lighter black holes (and, therefore, much more numerous) survive to this day. A greater number of nearby candidates drastically increases the local explosions rate, passing from one every 100,000 years to one every 10 years.

We have the technology to see it. The best part is that we do not need to build new technology. Gamma ray observatories as Hawc in Mexico And Lhaaso in China are already scanning the sky and are perfectly able to detect the outbreak of a nearby primary black hole, at a distance of up to 0.3 light years.

“We already have the technology to observe these explosions, so we should be prepared,” says Michael Baker, lead author of the study. If it happened, it would be a historical moment. We would be seeing, for the first time, the final echo of the creation of the universe, a first look at the most fundamental secrets of the cosmos in a single and spectacular outbreak of light.

In Xataka | Stephen Hawking made a prediction on black holes in 1971. A new signal has been overwhelmed