The Life of a Star

Stellar Nebula Main Cycle Red Giant White Dwarf Supernova Black Hole

Black Holes - Inescapable

Most neutron stars have a mass totaling about 1.4 times that of the sun. If this number is doubled, an entirely new phenomena occurs. The remaining core continues to collapse on itself, essentially creating a hole in space. These are called black holes. Black holes are so dense that nothing entering its gravitational field ever escapes, not even light! The edge of a black hole, the point of no return if you will, is referred to as event horizon. Once event horizon is reached a body cannot escape; it is drawn to the center of mass of the hole, where there is presumed to exist a singularity. The singularity is a difficult concept that can best be explained as the point mass at the center of the hole. Obviously, scientists do not know precisely what can be found at the singularity, as nothing can escape the gravitational field of a black hole.

White holes are an interesting idea often mentioned in conjunction with black holes. It is important to mention that no evidence has yet been found to prove the existence of white holes. While they have not been proved false, their existence is highly unlikely. The concept of a white hole is more just something fun to consider as an alternate solution.
The hypothetical singularity that is presumed to exist at the center (or bottom) of a black hole is actually the solution to a mathematical equation. As one equation used to reach the singularity conclusion contains a squared time term, there are two possible solutions. The singularity and black hole are part of the first solution. The other solution yields the exact opposite, literally, a white hole. As all matter and light flow in to a black hole and cannot escape, (theoretically) the same matter and light would flow out of a coincident white hole. A white hole-black hole pairing is called a wormhole, and is thought to be a portal to an alternate universe. Photo Courtesy of NASA

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