In an astronomy class, our professor gave us the formula for Escape Velocity. It's typically used to calculate how fast a rocket must go to get out of the gravitational pull of the planet. It's a simple formula that takes into account the mass of both objects, and their distance.
As you make the mass of the larger object greater and greater, it becomes clear that eventually the escape velocity can be greater than the speed of light.
That's all a black hole is: A gravity well strong enough that even light itself cannot escape.
I knew this already to some extent, but the simplicity of the math really stunned me.
As you make the mass of the larger object greater and greater, it becomes clear that eventually the escape velocity can be greater than the speed of light.
That's all a black hole is: A gravity well strong enough that even light itself cannot escape.
I knew this already to some extent, but the simplicity of the math really stunned me.