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Black holes were theoretically established in 1915, shortly after Albert Einstein published his theory of General Relativity. Since then, observations have confirmed black holes as actual astrophysical objects. In this Insight we publish ten long- and short-format pieces (in the “Reviews & Perspectives” and “Views & Comments” tabs, respectively) discussing key aspects of black holes, from their masses, to their spins, to the ways in which they impact their surroundings and are studied. This collection also showcases some of the black hole-related content that Nature Astronomy has published since our launch (in the “Primary research” and “Further reading” tabs). Also, please view our previous collection of landmark black hole discoveries published in Nature and other Springer Nature journals.
The James Webb Space Telescope may detect and distinguish a young galaxy that hosts a direct-collapse black hole and nearby massive metal-free star formation at redshift 15 with as little as a 20,000-second total exposure time across four filters.
We calculate the continuous nanohertz gravitational-wave emission from individual supermassive black hole binaries and the gravitational-wave background they generate, which will be observable with pulsar timing arrays.
A candidate dual supermassive black hole system with a projected separation of 0.35 pc is found in the gas-rich interacting spiral galaxy NGC 7674, evidenced by a ∼0.7 kpc Z-shaped radio jet and two, possibly inverted-spectrum, compact radio cores.
The X-ray polarization properties of the black hole binary Cygnus X-1 in its hard state, combined with spectral and timing data, reveals that the accretion disk corona is either an extended structure or located far from the black hole.
A bright X-ray outburst from a massive star cluster 12.5 kpc from a galactic centre fits the profile of a tidal disruption event (TDE), indicating the likely presence of an intermediate-mass black hole (IMBH). TDEs could be the most effective way of identifying IMBHs.
The authors predict the ability of the Event Horizon Telescope (in its 2017 campaign) to distinguish between different theories of gravity based on images of Sagittarius A*; they suggest that it will not be possible.
Interferometric observations of 3C84 reveal a broad cylindrical jet a few hundred gravitational radii from the black hole, implying that the jet either undergoes a rapid lateral expansion on even smaller scales or is launched from the accretion disk.
During reconfinement in unmagnetized relativistic jets, a centrifugal instability develops that leads to a turbulent state. This instability likely lies behind the division of active galactic nuclei jets into the two Fanaroff–Riley classes.
Black hole masses derived from the properties of the accretion disk and virial mass estimates differ by a factor that is inversely proportional to the width of the broad emission lines. An inclined planar gas distribution may account for this effect.
The discovery of the most energetic transient event to date is reported. Its spectroscopic properties and temporal evolution imply it is powered by shock interaction between expanding material and large quantities of surrounding dense matter.
A delay between rapid optical and X-ray flux variations from an accreting black-hole binary is reported together with a brightening radio jet, indicating a characteristic elevation of the radiative jet base of 0.1 light-seconds above the black hole.
A candidate intermediate-mass black hole is reported within a molecular cloud near Sgr A*, the centre of our Galaxy. High-resolution observations with ALMA reveal extreme gas kinematics and a compact source consistent with a quiescent black hole.
Low-mass black holes that accrete stars from locally dense environments grow over the Hubble time above a minimal mass of 105 solar masses, independently of their initial mass. This explains why there are no convincing cases of intermediate-mass black holes to date.
The key ingredients for a massive cloud of gas to collapse and directly form a black hole without fragmenting and forming stars are a strong ionizing background emission and a closely timed burst of star formation in its vicinity.
A magnetohydrodynamic model for outflows around supermassive black holes can also reproduce the X-ray properties of an outflow around a stellar black hole. This indicates that magnetic forces have a universal role to play in driving these winds.
Transient object ASASSN-15lh was previously cast as the most luminous supernova ever discovered. Now, however, there is convincing evidence that its flare was a tidal disruption event: a rapidly-spinning black hole tearing apart a neighbouring star.