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Could a small black hole surprise us on earth.
I have a question.
We would probably get some warning about a comet or an asteroid - but what about a pea size black hole? If one hit the moon would it be like a match to paper and suck the entire moon into itself even if it took some time? Could an invisible small black hole just show up over the Sierra Nevada and no one would have foreseen it and it would destroy the earth? Would it destroy the earth instantly or would there be some fantastically horrible slow whirlpool of matter into a small black hole so that we would all have time to feel intense fear? I suspect these questions have been answered many times before but I have been looking for several months and I bet other's are wondering too. |
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Could a small black hole surprise us on earth.
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Could a small black hole surprise us on earth.
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#4
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Could a small black hole surprise us on earth.
On Sun, 22 Feb 2004 22:58:21 GMT, wrote:
I have a question. We would probably get some warning about a comet or an asteroid - but what about a pea size black hole? If one hit the moon would it be like a match to paper and suck the entire moon into itself even if it took some time? Could an invisible small black hole just show up over the Sierra Nevada and no one would have foreseen it and it would destroy the earth? Would it destroy the earth instantly or would there be some fantastically horrible slow whirlpool of matter into a small black hole so that we would all have time to feel intense fear? First, I don't believe it is possible to have such a small black hole. Anything this small (1e33g) would have formed only during processes very early in the Universe, and would have evaporated by now. If there remain any natural processes capable of producing such low mass objects, they are presumably very rare, as would be our chance of encountering one such a black hole. That said, the effect of such an object striking the Earth (or the Moon) is difficult to judge. If this black hole were in an Earth crossing orbit around the Sun, it would strike at typical meteor speeds. While the mass is around 50 times that of the Moon, the momentum is very high, and I think it probable that only a relatively small amount of energy would actually be dissipated. The object might simply crash through the Earth and out the other side, doing relatively little damage. It certainly wouldn't swallow the Earth up. If the black hole was passing through from somewhere else, it might have just about any velocity. The most interesting case would be if its approach was at a low speed. Then, it would strike the Earth at about our escape velocity (11.2 km/s). It would probably end up in an orbit around the Earth's center of mass, but that orbit would actually be inside the Earth. Although it would take a very long time to swallow up all the Earth's mass, the gravitational effects would be devastating. _________________________________________________ Chris L Peterson Cloudbait Observatory http://www.cloudbait.com |
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Could a small black hole surprise us on earth.
On Sun, 22 Feb 2004 22:58:21 GMT, wrote:
I have a question. We would probably get some warning about a comet or an asteroid - but what about a pea size black hole? If one hit the moon would it be like a match to paper and suck the entire moon into itself even if it took some time? Could an invisible small black hole just show up over the Sierra Nevada and no one would have foreseen it and it would destroy the earth? Would it destroy the earth instantly or would there be some fantastically horrible slow whirlpool of matter into a small black hole so that we would all have time to feel intense fear? First, I don't believe it is possible to have such a small black hole. Anything this small (1e33g) would have formed only during processes very early in the Universe, and would have evaporated by now. If there remain any natural processes capable of producing such low mass objects, they are presumably very rare, as would be our chance of encountering one such a black hole. That said, the effect of such an object striking the Earth (or the Moon) is difficult to judge. If this black hole were in an Earth crossing orbit around the Sun, it would strike at typical meteor speeds. While the mass is around 50 times that of the Moon, the momentum is very high, and I think it probable that only a relatively small amount of energy would actually be dissipated. The object might simply crash through the Earth and out the other side, doing relatively little damage. It certainly wouldn't swallow the Earth up. If the black hole was passing through from somewhere else, it might have just about any velocity. The most interesting case would be if its approach was at a low speed. Then, it would strike the Earth at about our escape velocity (11.2 km/s). It would probably end up in an orbit around the Earth's center of mass, but that orbit would actually be inside the Earth. Although it would take a very long time to swallow up all the Earth's mass, the gravitational effects would be devastating. _________________________________________________ Chris L Peterson Cloudbait Observatory http://www.cloudbait.com |
#6
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Could a small black hole surprise us on earth.
Chris L Peterson:
...The most interesting case would be if its approach was at a low speed. Then, it would strike the Earth at about our escape velocity (11.2 km/s). It would probably end up in an orbit around the Earth's center of mass, but that orbit would actually be inside the Earth. Although it would take a very long time to swallow up all the Earth's mass, the gravitational effects would be devastating. ***** Pub Patron: "Is the world really going to end?" Ford Prefect: "Yes." PP: "Couldn't we put a paper bag over our heads?" FP: "Yes." PP: "Would that help?" FP: "No." (Or words to that effect) - Douglas Adams, HHGG I, for one, will be sleeping with a paper bag over my head tonight. Davoud -- usenet *at* davidillig dawt com |
#7
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Could a small black hole surprise us on earth.
"Chris L Peterson" wrote in message ... On Sun, 22 Feb 2004 22:58:21 GMT, wrote: I have a question. We would probably get some warning about a comet or an asteroid - but what about a pea size black hole? If one hit the moon would it be like a match to paper and suck the entire moon into itself even if it took some time? Could an invisible small black hole just show up over the Sierra Nevada and no one would have foreseen it and it would destroy the earth? Would it destroy the earth instantly or would there be some fantastically horrible slow whirlpool of matter into a small black hole so that we would all have time to feel intense fear? First, I don't believe it is possible to have such a small black hole. Anything this small (1e33g) would have formed only during processes very early in the Universe, and would have evaporated by now. If there remain any natural processes capable of producing such low mass objects, they are presumably very rare, as would be our chance of encountering one such a black hole. That said, the effect of such an object striking the Earth (or the Moon) is difficult to judge. If this black hole were in an Earth crossing orbit around the Sun, it would strike at typical meteor speeds. While the mass is around 50 times that of the Moon, the momentum is very high, and I think it probable that only a relatively small amount of energy would actually be dissipated. The object might simply crash through the Earth and out the other side, doing relatively little damage. It certainly wouldn't swallow the Earth up. If the black hole was passing through from somewhere else, it might have just about any velocity. The most interesting case would be if its approach was at a low speed. Then, it would strike the Earth at about our escape velocity (11.2 km/s). It would probably end up in an orbit around the Earth's center of mass, but that orbit would actually be inside the Earth. Although it would take a very long time to swallow up all the Earth's mass, the gravitational effects would be devastating. This is very interesting. It is interesting to think of the world's cities, not to mention its lifeforms, if the gravity suddenly went up some huge fraction of what it is now. I can see it pulling all the skyscrapers colllapsing straight down into the ground like spears. Or maybe the structures are overbuilt but the gravitational pull sucks the file cabinets though the floor panels along with the water coolers down into the basement? And while you might be ok supported by your car seats, and the car suspension might be able to handle slow driving - what happens when you step out of the car and you now weigh triple what you joints and bones are use to? What a way to go. I wonder if the dinosaurs wouldn't have had an easier time with the asteroid? I wonder what would happen to planes in the air? Would the gravity make the atmosphere now three times as dense so that the planes, while weighing three times as much, would have that much more lift on their wings? I guess the wings might just rip off? Thx for the info. |
#8
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Could a small black hole surprise us on earth.
On Mon, 23 Feb 2004 05:11:29 GMT, wrote:
This is very interesting. It is interesting to think of the world's cities, not to mention its lifeforms, if the gravity suddenly went up some huge fraction of what it is now. I can see it pulling all the skyscrapers colllapsing straight down into the ground like spears. Or maybe the structures are overbuilt but the gravitational pull sucks the file cabinets though the floor panels along with the water coolers down into the basement? And while you might be ok supported by your car seats, and the car suspension might be able to handle slow driving - what happens when you step out of the car and you now weigh triple what you joints and bones are use to? What a way to go. I wonder if the dinosaurs wouldn't have had an easier time with the asteroid? I wonder what would happen to planes in the air? Would the gravity make the atmosphere now three times as dense so that the planes, while weighing three times as much, would have that much more lift on their wings? I guess the wings might just rip off? I don't think it is this simple. What you have is an object massing the same as the earth and traveling with a fairly high relative velocity. So first of all, there is going to be a transfer of momentum, and the Earth is going to be slingshot out of its orbit- whether that takes us out of the Solar System, or simply into a new solar orbit, we're in deep doo doo. Second, because the black hole and the Earth are moving rapidly with respect to each other, the effect isn't going to be a simply increased gravitational field, but some kind of vector that changes over several minutes. If the black hole ends up orbiting inside the Earth, the tidal effects are going to cause all manner of tectonic events that will be much more effective at collapsing buildings than the gravitational fluctuations alone. _________________________________________________ Chris L Peterson Cloudbait Observatory http://www.cloudbait.com |
#9
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Could a small black hole surprise us on earth.
"Chris L Peterson" wrote in message ... On Mon, 23 Feb 2004 05:11:29 GMT, wrote: This is very interesting. It is interesting to think of the world's cities, not to mention its lifeforms, if the gravity suddenly went up some huge fraction of what it is now. I can see it pulling all the skyscrapers colllapsing straight down into the ground like spears. Or maybe the structures are overbuilt but the gravitational pull sucks the file cabinets though the floor panels along with the water coolers down into the basement? And while you might be ok supported by your car seats, and the car suspension might be able to handle slow driving - what happens when you step out of the car and you now weigh triple what you joints and bones are use to? What a way to go. I wonder if the dinosaurs wouldn't have had an easier time with the asteroid? I wonder what would happen to planes in the air? Would the gravity make the atmosphere now three times as dense so that the planes, while weighing three times as much, would have that much more lift on their wings? I guess the wings might just rip off? I don't think it is this simple. What you have is an object massing the same as the earth and traveling with a fairly high relative velocity. So first of all, there is going to be a transfer of momentum, and the Earth is going to be slingshot out of its orbit- whether that takes us out of the Solar System, or simply into a new solar orbit, we're in deep doo doo. Second, because the black hole and the Earth are moving rapidly with respect to each other, the effect isn't going to be a simply increased gravitational field, but some kind of vector that changes over several minutes. If the black hole ends up orbiting inside the Earth, the tidal effects are going to cause all manner of tectonic events that will be much more effective at collapsing buildings than the gravitational fluctuations alone. Well, I know that massive earthquakes right above their epicenters produce land waves. I think the biggest is eight feet? I wonder if this is what you mean by tidal effects? That would be spectacular. I wonder if anybody has ever modeled that on a computer. I know the national lab at Los Alamos had their programs model the asteroid impact several years ago when the two Hollywood movies came out. I think that was after the public consciousness was raised with the Shoemaker-Levy impact on Jupiter. I wonder if anybody ever animated what your talking about? Maybe it would just be total devastation. |
#10
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Could a small black hole surprise us on earth.
any black hole of palpable size would be detected long before it got here.
a pea is of palpable size when it comes to black holes, especially within the confines of a solar system. black holes smaller than a pea would do significant damage if not destroy the earth if the two collided, however such entities are probably rare at this age in the universe some 13 billion years old?, and their numbers in our galaxy would be statistically nonexistent. Thats my opinion anyway - Black holes or related high energy entities on the order of a molecule or an atom or smaller, must be exceedingly rare, as compared with say neutrons? Neutrons do pass through the Earth daily without any short term recognition. I believe the processes which may have once generated very small singularities, are long gone. But I could be wrong about all of this - Jerry wrote: I have a question. We would probably get some warning about a comet or an asteroid - but what about a pea size black hole? If one hit the moon would it be like a match to paper and suck the entire moon into itself even if it took some time? Could an invisible small black hole just show up over the Sierra Nevada and no one would have foreseen it and it would destroy the earth? Would it destroy the earth instantly or would there be some fantastically horrible slow whirlpool of matter into a small black hole so that we would all have time to feel intense fear? I suspect these questions have been answered many times before but I have been looking for several months and I bet other's are wondering too. |
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