GW250114: Rotating Black Holes Collide
It was the strongest gravitational wave signal yet measured -- what did it show?
GW250114
was detected by both arms of the
Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory (LIGO)
in Washington and
Louisiana
USA earlier this year.
Analysis showed that the event was created when two
black holes, each of mass around 33 times the mass of the
Sun,
coalesced into one larger
black hole with a mass of around 63 solar masses.
Even though the event happened about a billion light years away,
the signal was so strong that the spin of all
black holes, as well
as initial
ringing of the final black hole,
was deduced with
exceptional accuracy.
Furthermore, it was confirmed better than before, as
previously predicted, that the total
event horizon area of the combined black hole was greater than those of the
merging black holes.
Featured, an
artist's illustration depicts an
imaginative and conceptual view from near one of the
black holes before collision.