Effects of a mini black hole on our solar system?

[alternative3]

If a random mini black hole (maybe 10 times the mass of our sun) moved through our solar system, what are the possible effects? What if it moved close enough or touched a planet?

 

How fast would it happen?

Would there be enough gravitational pull from the sun on the outer planets if they were moved off their orbit to keep them from being slung into the cosmos?

What would happen to say, Earth, should the black hole come into contact with the planet?

[sanctus]

Intuitively what would be sure is that the orbits would change since the gravititational pull is not negligible...

[Boerseun]

Obviously, if a mini black hole travels through our solar system, it must have come from somewhere. Which means its gravitational effects would be felt by the solar system long before it actually enters the system.

 

But with its mass being so much more that the sun, I guess it'll be safe to say that all planets will either be ejected from the solar system or start orbiting the black hole, depending on their current orbital position and velocity at the time the object's gravitational effects start overriding those of the sun. Some planets will fall into the black hole, some will be ejected and some will orbit the black hole. It all depends on the vectors involved at the time.

 

But it'll be safe to say that if a black hole of 10 times the mass of our sun travels through our solar system, the solar system as we know it will be completely and utterly destroyed.

[freeztar]

Hence, the "Petition to save the solar system from "small" blackholes campaign".

We've pretty much cinched the Earth delegates, but the judges are ruling whether or not the "head start" from the Earthlings constitutes a cheat. Mars delegates protest claiming, "We haven't even been given a chance to study Darwin yet!".

 

This pithy inter-solar battle may compromise the Earthlings ability to combat the gravitational demon, but as one ARMY commander states, "We don't know where the hole is, but we know where it isn't. If Mars could help out, that would be great, but so far, we haven't heard a peep from them".

 

:cup::hyper::doh:

[kalexia]

Would it be theoretically possible to change the course of a mini black hole? If one was approaching could it be 'drawn' away from us by the creation of a larger mass black hole near to it (but furthur away from us?) Or would the gravitational affects on the smaller one be neglible?

[Jay-qu]

Would it be theoretically possible to change the course of a mini black hole? If one was approaching could it be 'drawn' away from us by the creation of a larger mass black hole near to it (but furthur away from us?) Or would the gravitational affects on the smaller one be neglible?

Yeah sure, if you had a comparable or larger mass it could be drawn away. I would have to be done with A LOT of energy and done a long way before it got here.. it might just turn out easier to move the whole solar system while it passes.. :hihi:

 

Not a trivial task for even a type III civilization, impossible for a measly ~0.8

[Moontanman]

If a random mini black hole (maybe 10 times the mass of our sun) moved through our solar system, what are the possible effects? What if it moved close enough or touched a planet?

 

How fast would it happen?

Would there be enough gravitational pull from the sun on the outer planets if they were moved off their orbit to keep them from being slung into the cosmos?

What would happen to say, Earth, should the black hole come into contact with the planet?

 

I'm not sure if I understand what you mean by "mini black hole" Ten times the mass of the sun is not a mini black hole. Most scientists would rate a black hole of that size as being a major black hole or at least medium size black hole. If I understand the process very much most black holes would start at about 1.5 times the mass of the sun and then jump orders of magnitude to the giant black hole like the one at the center of our galaxy. A truly mini black hole, mass about the size of a small asteroid or a large mountain would be bright as a star radiating energy as mostly gamma rays and less of the lower wave lengths. If such a black hole passed through the earth it would do considerable damage any living thing on the surface of the earth (at least close to the entry point) but it probably wouldn't destroy the earth. The radiation would kill everything in line of sight of the black hole things nearest the entry point would be irradiated the most and further away objects less as it passed through the earth. If it was moving a reasonable velocity of several miles a second it would move through the earth as though the earth wasn't even there. Even something as dense as neutronium could pass through the earth and even orbit the core of the earth under ground, the rock being inconsequential to the neutronium. a "mini black hole" would be even smaller and denser than neutronium and simply pass through the earth as though it wasn't even there. Gravitational disruption would be minimal if at all because the gravity of a mini black hole would still only be as much as the gravity of a small asteriod or large mountain.

 

 

 

Michael

Life is the poetry of the universe

Love is the poetry of life

[TheFaithfulStone]

Hey Good answer!

 

You don't have to have a ridiculous large amount of mass or a ridiculously small dimension to have a black hole, you just have to have a ridiculously large DENSITY.

 

Thus, Sgr A* can have a mass of several million times the sun, and also be several light hours across.

 

There's not any theoretical limitation to how small an event horizon could be. (Planck Length maybe?) So hopefully, if a black hole that's ACTUALLY small (and not, as you propose, quite large) drifts through the Solar System, we'd never even know.

 

But yeah - anything with appreciable mass that's just "passing through" is gonna be bad news

 

TFS