Chaos may make black holes bright

Janna Levin
Phys. Rev. D 60, 064015 – Published 20 August 1999
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Abstract

Black holes cannot be seen directly since they absorb light and emit none, the very quality which earned them their name. We suggest that black holes may be seen indirectly through a chaotic defocusing of light. A black hole can capture light from a luminous companion in chaotic orbits before scattering the light in random directions. To a distant observer, the black hole would appear to light up. If the companion were a bright radio pulsar, this estimate suggests the black hole echo could be detectable.

  • Received 28 October 1998

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevD.60.064015

©1999 American Physical Society

Authors & Affiliations

Janna Levin

  • Astronomy Centre, University of Sussex, Brighton BN1 9QJ, United Kingdom
  • Center for Particle Astrophysics, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, California 94720-7304

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Issue

Vol. 60, Iss. 6 — 15 September 1999

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