The History Of Black Holes Essay.
Scientific discoveries are fundamental innovations that form the foundation of humanity
and their understanding of the universe. The outer space is filled with numerous fascinating and
strange objects that are yet to be discovered and have the potential of impacting on the lives of
people either positively or negatively. The field of astronomy allows curious and inquisitive
scholars to study the bodies that exist outside the earth and how they can be used to change the
contemporary way of life. The discovery of black holes in the early 18 th century created a leeway
that allowed more scientists to study it further and have an in-depth understanding on the same.
It was during this timeline that it was realized that black holes actually contained a
gravitational force of high intensity such that light could not escape through it and neither could
minute or particulate objects. Further, scholars realized that there were various types of this outer
space body and their use depended on what they contained. The comprehension on the history of
black holes and how researchers have studied them to come up with ways of exploiting them
illustrates the benefits of scientific innovations. This paper is a detailed and comprehensive essay
that documents the history of black holes and how scientific evolution has created a pathway for
people to expand their knowledge and understanding about them. The History Of Black Holes Essay.
Thesis Statement
The existence of unknown and undiscovered objects in outer space is an intriguing
phenomenon that doubles up as a driving force that fuels the desire of researchers to gather
information to enhance their understanding of these outer bodies.
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Describe the history of black holes in regards to how the evolution of science has allowed
our knowledge of them to expand throughout the years. Develop your paper with a good
introduction, thesis, body with relevant sub-headings as well as a good conclusion. The History Of Black Holes Essay.
Body of the Essay
a) History of black holes
The existence of black holes is often described by many as a strange occurrence since
they are just objects that live in outer space and do not interfere with humanity of other foreign
bodies. Black holes are objects that are found in space and they lack a surface like other bodies
in the galaxy such as stars and the planets (Cowen, 2014). Instead, these bodies are characterized
by having a region of space where matter has just solidified and collapsed on them. This is why
the black holes are often termed as regions of space that have the potential to exhibit forces of
gravity that are quite high. This gravitational force does not allow anything to escape from it
regardless of whether it is a particle, dust or even radiation (Croswell, 2012). The History Of Black Holes Essay.
The history of black holes dates back to the early 18 th century when various scientists
began providing their explanations on how they understood these outer space objects. John
Michael is one of the pioneering scientists who explained that there was a possibility of having
massive bodies in space that could also have the velocity and speed to travel faster that light
itself. This assertion was later supported by the discovery of Simon Pierre in the same century
when he stated that there were large objects in space that had the ability to illuminate the
universe (Dye, 2015). However, Pierre could not proof how he they could be visualized and
people became skeptical about his conclusive findings. The History Of Black Holes Essay.
It was until the 20 th century that Albert Einstein came up with his own theory that was
able to provide a solid explanation on how black holes came to exist. This theory is popularly
known as the theory of general relativity and its principles are based on the fact there is a
mathematical model that can predict the curvature of space time (Kaiser, 2015). Simply put,
Einstein’s theory is capable of making predictions on how a compact mass of an object can be
able to deform over time such that it forms a black hole. Further, the general relativity theory is
based on geometric calculations and modern physics such that the Newton’s law of gravity is
included in the formula (Majeski, 2012). The History Of Black Holes Essay.
It is through the universal gravitation theory that the elements of space and time are
factored in so as to explain in detail how the black holes came about. The issue of curvature is
also essential as it determines how momentum and energy are involved in the creation of black
holes and what type of radiation is present. The historic timeline that explains how black holes
have evolved shows that scientists adopted the general relativity theory of Einstein and used it to
develop their own findings. One such researcher was Karl Schwarzschild who embraced
Einstein’s theory in the following year of 1916 and used it to come up with his own description
of a black hole (Naeye, 2012). The History Of Black Holes Essay.
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Additionally, Karl also took into consideration the gravity that is contained in these space
objects in terms of their radius and he concluded by calling it the Schwarzschild’s radius. The
scientist that first coined the term black hole was actually John Wheeler in the year 1964 after
extensively studying their structure and composition (Sawyer, 2011). This term became official
and the scientists that came after this made their inventions by referring to these objects as black
holes and not by any other term. Stephen Hawking and Cygnus were two researchers that
contributed immensely to the study of black holes. The History Of Black Holes Essay.
They were able to come up with their own theory that explained the final fate of black
holes and at the same time they were able to visualize one of them (Shipman, 2010). The year
1970 is when the first black hole was actually seen by astronomers and they also came to learn
that these objects could emit radiation in the form of x-rays. What’s more, this black hole also
had a companion that was smaller than the size of planet earth but its mass was larger than that
of a neutron star (Sawyer, 2011). The History Of Black Holes Essay.
The perfect evidence of black holes was made much later in the year 1990 when black
holes could actually be seen clearly and how they existed within the galaxy. In fact, astronomers
where able to show that black holes were massive objects that orbited around other bodies within
a very small region (Naeye, 2012). This was made possible by the space telegraph that could
magnify images and make them visible from earth. It was after this time that scientists
discovered that black holes also had types since the Space Imaging Telescope could be able to
magnify them and bring them into sharp focus (Naeye, 2012). The History Of Black Holes Essay.
The three types of black holes include the supermassive type, the steller ones and finally
the intermediate black hole. The steller black holes are known to be very small but also have the
potential of being deadly. It is believed that this type of black holes are formed when stars burn
through space and find themselves collapsing. The continuation of this process leads to many
stars falling on one another such that they form a mass that later results into a steller black hole.
This means that the latter are formed by individual stars collapsing on each other to create a
dense mass of an object (Cowen, 2014).
Steller black holes are known to be larger than the size of the sun and at the same time
they contain a high amount of gravitational force that is able to pull other objects towards it.
What’s more, these black holes can be able to consume or take up dust particles and other gases that are within their galaxy (Croswell, 2012). This process ends up making them larger in size
and this can continue as long as they exist. The Milky Way is one of the well-known galaxies
and it actually contains several steller black holes. The other category of black holes is the
supermassive one and just like the name suggests, they are normally huge in size. Further, the
supermassive black holes are described by astronomers as bodies that populate and fill the
universe since their size is gigantic and enormous (Dye, 2015). The History Of Black Holes Essay.
For this reason, they dominate over all the other black holes and even over other objects
that exist in outer space. The supermassive types are known to be even bigger than the sun and
this just indicates their hugeness. However, their radius indicates that it is smaller than the earth
and a number of stars (Cowen, 2014). These type of black holes can be seen in the galaxy such
as the Milky Way and they also gather dust and gas just like the steller type so that their sizes can
grow. The last type of black holes are the intermediate ones that are described as being caught up
in the middle of the steller type and the supermassive ones. Its name suggests that they are not as
small or minute as the steller ones and neither are they as gigantic or huge as the supermassive
ones (Majeski, 2012). The History Of Black Holes Essay.
The intermediate black holes are formed by clustering of stars in a chain reaction. This
ends up making them to fall in the middle of the galaxy where they form a body that is of
varying size. This type of black holes are quite rare compared to the rest and scientific inventions
have been instrumental in their discovery, location and visualization (Croswell, 2012).
The following part of this essay explores how evolution in science has expanded and increased
people’s knowledge on the existence of black holes. The History Of Black Holes Essay.
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b) Role Of Scientific Evolution In The Understanding Of Black Holes
The advent of technology within the past two centuries has been instrumental when it
comes to black hole research. At the same time, the numerous inventions that have been made in
the field of science cannot be underestimated and neither can they be assumed. The History Of Black Holes Essay.Satellites and telescopes are two of the most instrumental innovations that have largely and significantly
contributed towards the study and understanding of black holes (Dye, 2015). These devices are
able to travel into space using lenses and radiation to observe, characterize and view the structure
of outer space objects. What’s more, the creation of spaceships has allowed many researchers to
travel into space for months or even years where they get to study black holes in real time. The History Of Black Holes Essay.
These space crafts are designed such that the people travelling are fitted with protective
gear that allows them to inhale only oxygen (Naeye, 2012). Further, the device is also fitted with
all the conditions that can support life for the duration that they are away from earth. It is through
the invention of the space craft that the scientists were able to observe black holes in space and
galaxies so that they could understand their formation, sizes and variation in structure. In fact,
the spaceships helped them come to the conclusion that there were different types of black holes
based on their sizes and how they were formed (Sawyer, 2011). The History Of Black Holes Essay.
Evolution in science has also led to the creation of organizations and bodies such as
NASA or the National Astronomy and Satellite Association which oversee all the efforts and
activities that revolve around astronomy research. Further, they also provide funding
opportunities since the study of objects in space is quite an expensive affair (Shipman, 2010).
It is through the various inventions in science that the scope of understanding when it comes to
black holes has been widened and increased at the same rate. The History Of Black Holes Essay.
At the same time, the questions that people have with regards to these objects that exist in
outer space can now be correctly answered due to advents made in technology and science
(Shipman, 2010). For instance, people have often wondered how an astronomer is able to tell that
a black hole actually exists and yet they are known to be non-tangible objects. However, science
has been able to prove that black holes cannot be actually seen because of the gravitational force
that pulls light into the center of the whole (Majeski, 2012). Therefore, the absence of light
means that black holes are known to exist if there is movement of particles or objects around it.
An astronomer who has travelled into space or a person viewing it from a telescope can
be able to know that there is a black hole when they visualize how stars, gases and other particles
are affected by the force of gravity. Moreover, black holes can also be showed to exist if there
are other objects that are flying around or orbiting around a specific dark place (Majeski, 2012). The History Of Black Holes Essay.
It is also crucial to note that telescopes and satellites can be used in space crafts so that the
scientists can be able to see high energy light. The latter is a form of light that is emitted when a
black hole and a star come close together in space (Naeye, 2012). Further, this light is also
different since it cannot be seen by the human eye. The History Of Black Holes Essay.
It is only visible when magnified and when the person viewing it in space. Scientific
evolution has also made more people understand that black holes do not threaten humanity since
they do not have the potential of causing damage on the planet earth (Majeski, 2012).
Astronomers have concluded that black holes are immobile and hence, they cannot move about
in space destroying the stars, other plants or even the moon. It is also through this research that it
has been shown that the earth cannot fall into a black hole since the two are far apart (Naeye,
2012).In fact, the solar system that includes the sun, earth and all the other planets has been
discovered to be very far from all the three types of black holes. Hence, it would be close to
impossible for them to pull the planets into them by their gravitational force since the sun has a
much stronger one (Kaiser, 2015). Further, some countries have expressed fear that they think
that these black holes can actually turn the sun into one. However, science and research has made
it clear that this cannot happen at any one time due to the strong forces of gravity and even the
energy that the solar system contains. Indeed, scientific evolution has made significant changes
in research of black holes and expanded people’s understanding of the same. The History Of Black Holes Essay.
Conclusion
The existence of objects in space has always been a topic of fascination that interests
scientists as it does to the common human being. Black holes is one of the bodies found in outer
space and its history reveals how much these objects have evolved over the years. The last
century was instrumental to their research such that many facts and theories were postulated and
hypothesized. The History Of Black Holes Essay.
One of them is the general relativity theory that deals with the curvature of black holes in
space time that gives a solid explanation about the nature of these objects. It was until the 20 th
century that it became clear that black holes are not actually tangible but they are made up of
strong gravitational forces that can be able to pull gases, particles and other stars into them. The
evolutions made in science have proved to be valuable as they have enabled people to understand
the various types of black holes, their structure, formation, composition and their relationship
with other objects in space. The History Of Black Holes Essay.
References
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August 2016.
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August 2016. The History Of Black Holes Essay.