Astronomers, part of the LIGO-Virgo-KAGRA Collaboration, have detected gravitational waves from the largest black hole merger yet, involving two black holes 100 and 140 times the mass of the sun, forming a new black hole over 225 times the sun's mass. This event, named GW231123, is unusual due to the black holes' size and rapid spin, and it falls within the "mass gap" between stellar-mass and supermassive black holes, offering new insights into black hole formation.
Scientists have detected the largest black hole merger yet. What it is and why it matters
Black holesSpaceLIGOLIGO-Virgo-KAGRA (LVK) CollaborationCharlie HoyPriya NatarajanSophie BiniAstronomySupernovaeThe Sun
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TL;DR: Key points with love ❤️Astronomers, part of the LIGO-Virgo-KAGRA Collaboration, have detected gravitational waves from the largest black hole merger yet, involving two black holes 100 and 140 times the mass of the sun, forming a new black hole over 225 times the sun's mass. This event, named GW231123, is unusual due to the black holes' size and rapid spin, and it falls within the "mass gap" between stellar-mass and supermassive black holes, offering new insights into black hole formation.
Trending- 1 Priya Natarajan co-authored a paper in 2014
- 2 First gravitational wave detected in 2015
- 3 First gravitational wave announced in 2016
- 4 Priya Natarajan realized something in 2021
- 5 Gravitational waves from GW231123 reached Earth on November 23, 2023
- 6 Astronomers revealed the detection today (July 15, 2025)
- The detection provides new data points for understanding black hole formation and evolution, particularly for intermediate-mass black holes.
- It pushes the development of theoretical tools in astrophysics and fuels fundamental human curiosity about the universe.
What: The LIGO-Virgo-KAGRA Collaboration detected gravitational waves from the largest black hole merger observed to date, involving two black holes (100 and 140 solar masses) merging into one (over 225 solar masses).
When: The gravitational waves reached Earth on November 23, 2023. The detection was revealed today (July 15, 2025). The first gravitational wave was detected in 2015 and announced in 2016. Priya Natarajan co-authored a paper in 2014 and realized something in 2021.
Where: The detection was made by instruments across the United States, Japan, and Italy. The merger occurred an estimated two to 13 billion light-years away.
Why: This merger is significant because of the unusually large size and rapid spin of the black holes, which fall into the "mass gap." It challenges existing theories of black hole formation and offers new avenues for understanding how black holes grow, potentially through successive mergers or by "gobbling up stars."
How: Gravitational waves, ripples in space-time, were detected by highly sensitive instruments of the LIGO-Virgo-KAGRA Collaboration. The characteristics of these waves allowed astronomers to infer the mass and spin of the merging black holes.