Einstein’s theory challenged: Black holes could be frozen stars, claims study
Many paradoxes linked to black holes would be resolved, if this theory were confirmed. However, it would challenge Einstein’s theory.
Rupendra Brahambhatt
Einsteins theory challenged: Black holes could be frozen stars, claims study
Black holes are one of those rare entities that defy the rules of science and are associated with many paradoxes that seem unresolvable. However, a new study proposes a theory that could change everything we know about black holes.
The study suggests that black holes are actually frozen stars, theoretical remnants of stars that have cooled down and no longer emit light or heat. Also called black dwarfs, frozen stars represent the final stage of a star’s life cycle.
Generally, scientists believe that stars take trillions of years to reach the black dwarf stage. As our universe is only 13.7 billion years old, it doesn’t have any frozen stars yet.
However, in the new study, the researchers conducted a detailed analysis of the similarities between frozen stars and black holes and discovered that their theory solves many of the paradoxes linked to the traditional black hole model.
The problem with the current black hole model
When it comes to black holes, the science community has been following what Albert Einstein stated in his theory of general relativity in 1915.
According to Einstein, there are two prime features of a black hole. First, it contains a point of infinite density at its center, which is referred to as singularity. Second, a black hole has an event horizon – a boundary that doesn’t allow anything to escape, not even light.
While this theory is widely accepted, it has also faced some big challenges. For instance, real-world observation suggests that infinities aren’t meant to exist in nature, and this is why everything is considered finite in physics.
Another contradiction arises from Stephen Hawking’s radiation paradox which suggests that black holes can emit radiation and slowly lose mass over time, which eventually leads to their complete evaporation. But how is this possible, since Einstein proposed that nothing escapes a black hole?
Also, if a black hole vaporizes, then the matter that formed the black hole is destroyed. However, this violates the law of conservation of information, which states that information, like matter, can neither be created nor destroyed. Information conservation also forms the basis of quantum mechanics.
However, according to the study authors, all these paradoxes are resolved when black holes are considered frozen stars — objects that lack both singularity and event horizon.
Do black holes make sense as frozen stars?
In their study, the researchers demonstrate that the theoretical values of the thermodynamic properties, such as entropy and thermal radiation, for black holes are similar to those of frozen stars.
“Frozen stars are a type of black hole mimickers: ultracompact, astrophysical objects that are free of singularities, lack a horizon, but yet can mimic all of the observable properties of black holes,” Ramy Brustein, first study author and a physics professor at Ben-Gurion University in Israel, told Live Science.
So, if black holes are frozen stars, this means they don’t have a point of infinite density or singularity. This condition suggests that they follow the same rules related to finiteness as real-world objects.
Plus, the lack of an event horizon suggests that radiations and particles can escape their boundary, which is in alignment with what Hawking stated about the emission of light from black holes.
“We have shown how frozen stars behave as (nearly) perfect absorbers although lacking a horizon and act as a source of gravitational waves. Moreover, they source the same external geometry as that of a conventional model of black holes and reproduce their conventional thermodynamic properties,” Brustein said.
However, the study has various limitations as well. For instance, black dwarfs are believed to have an internal structure whereas this is not expected in the case of black holes.
Also, there’s no experimental evidence that confirms that black holes are indeed frozen stars. Therefore, further research is required to validate this hypothesis.
The study is published in the journal Physical Review D.
I can not believe that they found another billion dollar asset! Maybe,maybe not.
