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Black Hole Burping

16 January 2018
Astronomy

This story is at https://phys.org/print434905088.html … a black hole caught burping. This rather strange tone of language goes on all the time in cosmological wonder worlds. If black holes aren't munching or feasting they are letting out wind from their bellies. It is all related to the assumption that black holes gobble material – and lick their lips afterwards, pat their bellies with a note of contentment, burp and fall asleep (become inactive once again). All clever stuff. This particular black hole has been active recently on two occasions. Basically, the belching accusation refers to blasts of jets of bright light. Really. That is what burping amounts to? Yes. We are being told the black hole has feasted, burped, taken a nap, and then got back to munching and belching once again (and going quiet afterwards). This supports the theory (hypothesis) – in everyday language. Are they correct?

At https://phys.org/print434903468.html … arcs, rings, and spirals of dust and gas around stars do not necessarily imply planets – it is now realised.

At https://phys.org/print434819755.html … there are more than a hundred clouds of hydrogen streaming away from the centre of the Milky Way (our galaxy) – hurtling towards intergalactic space. These are the so called Fermi Bubbles – giant billows of superheated gas at above and below the disc of the galaxy. They are powered, apparently, by a 'cosmic wind' (as opposed to a solar wind) with an origin, it is alleged, in a hypothetical black hole. What actually is at the centre of the galaxy?

   … and these are the Fermi Bubbles.

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