Humanity anticipates a dazzling show. Two black holes will merge in a galaxy within the Bootes constellation. Scientists assure that these events will not have catastrophic consequences.
A massive gravitational wave and a bright flash of light will occur from such an event. A gravitational wave is a distortion of space-time. Thus, time begins to slow or even reverse, and space begins to “pulsate.” Nobody is aware of the actual appearance because this has never occurred before.
Gravitational waves occasionally reach Earth, but they are extremely weak.
The distance to the relevant galaxy is 1 billion light-years. This is advantageous because the occurrence will not be catastrophic.
Two black holes orbit each other in the center of this distant galaxy. Their aggregate mass is around 800 million times that of the Sun, yet they are tiny by cosmic standards, smaller than the Earth’s orbital radius. Black holes advance and then retreat. As they approach, a brief flash occurs.
Long-term observation by astronomers has revealed that the frequency of these flashes is growing.
Prior to the recent past, such an outbreak occurred once per year. It is now performed monthly. This indicates that the smaller black hole is approaching the larger black hole.
When will it transpire? It is tough to express. Some scientists estimate that the merger will take one thousand days to complete. That is, it will either occur this year or the following.
Taking into account the millions of years that these black holes have likely been orbiting each other, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California calculates that they are now more than 99 percent close to collision. This translates to a collision occurring 10,000 years from now.
Humans will observe a tiny flash in the sky (normally this galaxy is not visible to the naked eye). One can only speculate about the potential consequences. The merging of black holes is the most catastrophic event that might occur in our universe.
