We are talking about black holes, which as of 2022 have the catalog designations Gaia BH1 and Gaia BH2. These are things we really shouldn’t find out about. Everything indicates that neither one nor the other is currently absorbing any matter from their surroundings, so not only does it glow itself, nor does any dust or gas in its surroundings glow.
Also read: The earliest black holes in history were discovered. They will merge into a real giant
Find these things It was only possible thanks to two other stars orbiting it in a binary system. However, unlike the previously discussed narrow X-ray systems, here the distance between the star and the black hole is much greater. Only an analysis of changes in stellar velocities towards and away from Earth made it possible to determine that both stars must be orbiting a massive body. The fact that no such object was found indicates that both are black holes. The distance between them and stars makes them an entirely new class of black holes. There are only two items in this category so far.
Read also: Black holes absorb light, but at the same time they produce shadows. How does that happen?
Where are the nearest black holes?
Black holes rank first and second in distance from Earth, respectively. Number one Gaia BH1 is only 1,560 light-years from Earth toward the constellation of Ophiuchus. The other, Gaia BH2, is 3,800 light-years away in the direction of the constellation Centaurus. Before the two were discovered, the nearest black hole known to us was about 5,000 light-years away from Earth.
Are you sure that these are the closest black holes? Mostly not. It is very likely that in a couple of years we will also discover those that are closer. That’s when a new catalog of data from the ongoing sky survey under the Gaia program is planned to be published.
Both black holes are likely remnants of supernova explosions. This is indicated by its mass fluctuation around 9-10 solar masses. Both black holes are inside the Milky Way.
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