By Jack Rhoton

      The first scientist to ever observe a black hole was Albert Einstein in 1916 and the theory was confirmed by John Wheeler in 1967. The first black hole was discovered in 1971, shortly after. This is the one that our own sun is orbiting right now.     

         So what is a black hole? Simply put, a black hole is an object with a gravitational force so strong that no matter of radiation can escape its gravity. Like its name suggests, black holes can not be seen, so how do we know that they are there? We can see the effects of black holes on the orbit of stars, and by the giant clouds of gas moving at accelerated speeds around them.

        Black holes are created when very big stars “die”or run out. This happens because they keep getting bigger and bigger until there is not enough energy in them to keep them stable, so they blow up. This creates a supernova, and if the right amounts of force is applied, a black hole forms.

       What about the black hole in the center of our universe? For one, it is the biggest black hole that we have ever observed, being 40.1 million times bigger than the sun. Our sun orbits this black hole, much like earth orbits it, as well as every other star in our galaxy. In a way,  the galaxy came to be because of the massive gravity of the black hole.

        Our black hole is a supermassive black hole, and it is the biggest one we have ever observed in. Most likely, there are black holes much, much bigger than ours. It is this big because it “eats” other objets. It does this by drawing nearby material into it because of its massive gravity. Then, it crushes the new material down to the density that it has, making the new material part of the black hole too. 

        Should we worry about the black hole? No, unless you plan on living until after the big rip (the theory on how the universe will implode on itself). It is much too far away from us to eat our star. Black holes can only consume objects that are 10 miles within its massive body. Black holes are nothing to worry about, in fact, if our sun was replaced with a black hole with the same mass as the sun, we would orbit the sun all the same (although we would all be dead because there would be no sunlight).

        Black holes do not live forever though. They emit energy every once and awhile, the exact times depending on the size of the black hole. Most black holes live about 10 to the 71st power years.That is longer than the universe has been around. The universe has only been around for thirteen-billion years. The black hole at the center of our universe will last up to around 10 to the 100th power years because it is a supermassive black hole. 

         We have come so far in our knowledge of black holes from when they were initially discovered. Who knows what we'll find out next.