Could Black Holes Be Hidden Inside Planets Like Earth? Scientists Explore

In a surprising discovery, astronomers have determined that small primordial black holes (PBHs) might be hiding within moons, asteroids, or even planets like Earth.

Scientists Explore Primordial Black Holes

As per scientists, these theoretical black holes formed shortly after the Big Bang, originating from extremely dense pockets of subatomic matter that underwent gravitational collapse.

Currently, scientists view PBHs as a form of dark matter and a potential source of primordial gravitational waves.

Recent research suggests that small PBHs are likely present within main-sequence, neutron, and dwarf stars, where they are gradually consuming the stars’ gas supply.

In a recent study, a team of physicists proposed a new approach for detecting primordial black holes (PBHs).

The team intends to search for PBHs inside planets and asteroids or by using large metal plates or slabs to detect signs of their passage.

Scientists are identifying the microchannels that these bodies would create, allowing them to detect the presence of PBHs.

The research was conducted by De-Chang Dai, a physicist at National Dong Hwa University in Taiwan and the Center for Education and Research in Cosmology and Astrophysics (CERCA) at Case Western Reserve University, along with Dejan Stojkovic, a physicist from the High Energy Physics and Cosmology group at the State University of New York Buffalo.

Team Proposes New Detection Techniques for PBHs

The paper outlines the team’s findings, which are set to be published in the journal Physics of the Dark Universe Following the peer review process.

In an email to Universe Today, De-Chang and Stojkovic explained their reasons for proposing novel detection methods for primordial black holes (PBHs) and said, “If an asteroid, or a moon, or a small planet (planetoid) has a liquid core surrounded by a solid crust, then a small PBH will consume the dense liquid core relatively quickly (within weeks to months). The crust will remain intact if the material is strong enough to support gravitational stress,” as reported by Wionews.

“Thus, we will end up with a hollow structure. If the central black hole is ejected (due to collisions with other objects), the density will be lower than the usual density of a rocky object with a liquid core,” they continued.

“We found, for example, that granite can support hollow structures up to the radius of 1/10 of the Earth’s radius. That is why we should concentrate on planetoids, moons, or asteroids,” stated Stojkovic. 

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