Topic description and stories

Supermassive black holes.

A force to be reckoned with

27 Nov 2017

Gravity is one of the universe's great mysteries. We decided to find out why. Think you know what gravity is? Think again. New research is revealing...

Read more
Stephen Hawking

Cambridge celebrates Stephen Hawking’s 75th birthday

03 Jul 2017

Some of the biggest names in science took part in a special public event yesterday (2 July) to celebrate the life and work of Stephen Hawking, on the...

Read more
Artist's conception shows two merging black holes similar to those detected by LIGO.

LIGO detects gravitational waves for third time

01 Jun 2017

Results confirm new population of black holes.

Read more
Artist's concept of a supermassive black hole

‘Saddle-shaped’ universe could undermine general relativity

22 May 2017

Researchers have shown how singularities – which are normally only found at the centre of black holes and hidden from view – could exist in highly...

Read more
Composite image showing how powerful radio jets from the supermassive black hole inflated huge bubbles in the hot, ionized, gas surrounding the galaxy. Credit: ALMA

Black Hole powered jets fuel star formation

14 Feb 2017

Astronomers using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) have discovered a surprising connection between a supermassive black hole...

Read more

Gravitational vortex provides new way to study matter close to a black hole

12 Jul 2016

An international team of astronomers has proved the existence of a ‘gravitational vortex’ around a black hole, solving a mystery that has eluded...

Read more
Computer simulations motivated by GW150914

Using gravitational waves to catch runaway black holes

30 Jun 2016

Black holes are the most powerful gravitational force in the Universe. So what could cause them to be kicked out of their host galaxies? Cambridge...

Read more
Artist’s impression depicting a compact object – either a black hole or a neutron star – feeding on gas from a companion star in a binary system.

Winds a quarter the speed of light spotted leaving mysterious binary systems

27 Apr 2016

Astronomers have observed two black holes in nearby galaxies devouring their companion stars at an extremely high rate, and spitting out matter at a...

Read more
Star field - 4

Five-dimensional black hole could ‘break’ general relativity

19 Feb 2016

Researchers have successfully simulated how a ring-shaped black hole could cause general relativity to break down: assuming the universe contains at...

Read more

Gravitational waves detected 100 years after Einstein’s prediction

11 Feb 2016

New window on the universe is opened with the observation of gravitational waves – ripples in spacetime – caused by the collision of two black holes...

Read more
Detail from animation of a black hole devouring a star

How to escape a black hole

26 Nov 2015

An international team of astrophysicists, including researchers from the University of Cambridge, has observed a new way for gas to escape the...

Read more
Black Holes Go 'Mano a Mano' (NASA, Chandra, 10/06/09)

New insights found in black hole collisions

27 Mar 2015

New research provides revelations about the most energetic event in the universe — the merging of two spinning, orbiting black holes into a much...

Read more

Pages