Can we see black holes?

Black holes are fascinating and mysterious objects in space. They are formed when a massive star runs out of fuel and collapses under the force of its own gravity, creating a region in space where gravity is so strong that nothing, not even light, can escape. This is why they are called 'black' holes - they do not emit any light or radiation that we can see.

However, we can indirectly observe black holes through their effects on nearby matter. For example, if a black hole is in a binary system with another star, it can pull matter from its companion star, which heats up and emits X-rays that can be detected by telescopes. Additionally, black holes can cause gravitational lensing, where their gravity bends the path of light from distant objects, making them appear distorted or magnified.

Recently, the first ever direct image of a black hole was captured by the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT), a network of radio telescopes around the world. The image shows the shadow of a black hole at the center of the galaxy M87, and was created by combining data from multiple telescopes to form an image with a resolution equivalent to being able to read a newspaper from a distance of 8,000 miles.

In summary, while we cannot directly see black holes with our eyes or telescopes, we can observe their effects on nearby matter and indirectly observe them through gravitational lensing. The first ever direct image of a black hole was recently captured by the Event Horizon Telescope by combining data from multiple radio telescopes.