GW190412

GW 190412 was a gravitational wave (GW) signal observed by the LIGO and Virgo detectors on 12 April 2019.[1][2] In April 2020, it was announced as the first time a collision of a pair of very differently sized black holes has been detected.[3] As a result, the signal displayed two prominent frequencies approximately a factor 1.5 (a perfect fifth) apart.[4]

The collision took place 2.4 billion light-years away.[3] The heavier of the black holes had a mass of 29.7 solar masses, and the lighter one around 8.4 solar masses.[3] The difference in mass resulted in the gravitational wave having two distinct frequencies, allowing researchers to perform a test of general relativity and determine that the larger black hole was spinning.[3]

See also

References
  1. "Superevent info - S190412m". LIGO. Retrieved 12 April 2019.
  2. The LIGO Scientific Collaboration; the Virgo Collaboration; Abbott, R.; Abbott, T. D.; Abraham, S.; Acernese, F.; Ackley, K.; Adams, C.; Adhikari, R. X.; Adya, V. B.; Affeldt, C.; Agathos, M.; Agatsuma, K.; Aggarwal, N.; Aguiar, O. D.; Aich, A.; Aiello, L.; Ain, A.; Ajith, P.; Akcay, S.; Allen, G.; Allocca, A.; Altin, P. A.; Amato, A.; Anand, S.; Ananyeva, A.; Anderson, S. B.; Anderson, W. G.; Angelova, S. V.; et al. (17 April 2020). "GW190412: Observation of a Binary-Black-Hole Coalescence with Asymmetric Masses". arXiv:2004.08342 [astro-ph.HE].
  3. Starr, Michelle. "Astronomers Find First-Ever Collision of Black Holes With a Strange Mass Discrepancy". ScienceAlert.
  4. Berry, Christopher (18 April 2020). "GW190412—A new flavour of binary black hole". Christopher Berry.
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