NASA, the American space agency, used its supercomputer to create an immersive visualization that takes viewers into the depths of black holes. The visualization video has been shared on YouTube.
The simulation created by NASA also allows spectators to explore the event horizon. The event horizon is similar to a border around a black hole; once something passes through it, it is lost forever. It’s like reaching a point of no return in space. Even light is unable to escape it.
Astrophysicist Jeremy Schnittman of NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center and scientist Brian Powell spearheaded the effort. It was created with the ‘Discover Supercomputer’, which generates a large amount of data.
The target is a supermassive black hole, similar to the one in the center of our Milky Way galaxy, with a mass millions of times higher than our Sun’s.
The simulation predicts two outcomes for NASA’s camera
As the observer approaches the black hole from a distance of 400 million miles, they will notice significant distortions in space-time. The swirling mass of hot gas, known as the accretion disk, and the stars in the background appear extremely twisted, like reflections in a funhouse mirror.
When the camera zooms in, the light generated by stars and the spinning gas disk around the black hole becomes more intense, producing a sound comparable to a race vehicle rushing past the observer.
The closer it comes, the slower it appears to travel, until it appears to have completely stopped.
The simulation anticipates two outcomes for NASA’s camera.
One simulation suggests that the camera will just miss the event horizon. The other simulation predicts that the camera will cross the line but then undergo a process known as “spaghettification.”
“Spaghettification” happens when intense gravitational forces near the black hole will pull on the camera so strongly that it will be ripped apart within 12.8 seconds.
This occurs as the camera rushes towards the core of the black hole, where lies a point of incomprehensible density known as the “singularity.”
Time starts to stretch or dilate. For the astronaut onboard, time passes normally, but for distant observers, it slows down. This time-stretching effect means that when the astronaut returns, they’ll be younger than those who stayed away.