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Is a Black Hole Detectable When There Are No Gas Clouds Near it?

-- Alexandra | June 2, 2021

Question:

Since black holes are technically invisible if they don’t have massive gas clouds orbiting them, how difficult would it be for scientists to observe a (hypothetical) supermassive black hole that was close enough to be inside our solar system? Would they be able to see it at all?

-- Alexandra

Answer:

Yes, as a black hole lets us know it exists due to its gravitational influence on nearby objects, not just gas clouds near its event horizon.  We would certainly detect the presence of a black hole in our Solar System as it would influence the motions of other objects, such as planets and asteroids.

-- Jeff Mangum