Is There a Black Hole Inside the Earth?

Black holes are one of the most mysterious and fascinating phenomena in the universe. They are regions of space where gravity is so strong that nothing, not even light, can escape. They are usually formed by the collapse of massive stars, but they can also be created by other processes, such as the collision of two neutron stars or the decay of primordial matter.

But what if there is a black hole not far away from us, but right inside our own planet? This may sound like a science fiction scenario, but some scientists have proposed that a micro black hole may exist at the centre of the Earth. In this blog post, we will explore this intriguing possibility and its implications for our understanding of the Earth and the universe.

How Do We Know That Black Holes Exist?

By Event Horizon Telescope

The existence of black holes was first predicted by Albert Einstein’s theory of general relativity, which describes how gravity affects space and time. According to this theory, when a star runs out of fuel and collapses under its own weight, it can form a black hole if it is massive enough. The boundary of a black hole, called the event horizon, is the point of no return for anything that falls into it.

However, for a long time, black holes were considered as theoretical objects that could not be observed directly. This changed in 2019, when an international team of astronomers announced that they had captured the first image of a black hole using the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT), a network of eight radio telescopes located around the world. The image showed a dark shadow surrounded by a ring of light, which was the result of the black hole’s gravity bending the light from the hot gas around it. The black hole was located at the centre of a galaxy called M87, about 55 million light-years away from Earth, and had a mass of about 6.5 billion times that of the sun.

The EHT image was a remarkable achievement that confirmed the predictions of general relativity and opened a new window to study these enigmatic objects. However, not all black holes are as massive as the one in M87. In fact, some black holes may be much smaller, even as small as an atom.

What Are Micro Black Holes?

Micro black holes, also known as quantum black holes, are hypothetical black holes that have a very small size and mass, ranging from a fraction of a millimetre to a fraction of a nanometre, and from a few kilograms to a few micrograms. Unlike stellar black holes, which are formed by the collapse of stars, micro black holes are thought to be formed by quantum fluctuations of energy in the early universe, or by high-energy collisions of subatomic particles in particle accelerators, such as the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) in Switzerland.

Micro black holes are expected to behave differently from their larger counterparts, due to the effects of quantum mechanics, the branch of physics that deals with the behaviour of the smallest particles and forces in nature. One of the main differences is that micro black holes are predicted to emit radiation, known as Hawking radiation, named after the late physicist Stephen Hawking, who first proposed it in 1974. Hawking radiation is caused by the creation of pairs of particles near the event horizon of a black hole, one of which falls into the black hole and the other escapes to infinity. This process reduces the mass and energy of the black hole, making it shrink and evaporate over time. The smaller the black hole, the faster it evaporates, until it eventually disappears in a burst of radiation.

The existence of micro black holes and Hawking radiation has not been confirmed experimentally, but some scientists believe that they may have found indirect evidence for them in the data from cosmic ray detectors, such as the Pierre Auger Observatory in Argentina, which measure the high-energy particles that come from outer space. Some of these particles, such as gamma rays and neutrinos, may be the remnants of micro black holes that were created in the early universe and have evaporated along their journey.

But what if some of these micro black holes have survived until today, and are hiding inside the Earth?

Could There Be a Micro Black Hole at the Centre of the Earth?

The idea that there could be a micro black hole at the centre of the Earth was first proposed by Russian physicist Vyacheslav Dokuchaev in 2007. He suggested that a micro black hole with a mass of about 10^17 kg, or about one trillionth of the mass of the Earth, could have been captured by the Earth’s gravity billions of years ago, and settled at the centre of the planet, where it would be surrounded by a dense shell of matter. This shell would act as a shield, preventing the black hole from evaporating and absorbing more matter.

Dokuchaev argued that such a micro black hole could explain some of the mysteries of the Earth’s interior, such as the origin of the geothermal heat, the generation of the magnetic field, and the dynamics of the inner core. He claimed that the micro black hole would act as a source of heat, due to the friction and radiation of the matter that orbits around it. This heat would then drive the convection currents in the outer core, which would create the magnetic field that protects the Earth from harmful cosmic rays. The micro black hole would also influence the rotation and oscillation of the inner core, which is composed of solid iron and nickel, and has a slightly different angular velocity and axis than the rest of the planet.

Dokuchaev’s hypothesis was met with scepticism and criticism by many other scientists, who pointed out several flaws and inconsistencies in his calculations and assumptions. For instance, some argued that the micro black hole would not be stable at the centre of the Earth, but would oscillate and move around, causing seismic disturbances and gravitational anomalies that would be detectable by instruments. Others questioned the plausibility of the capture and survival of the micro black hole, and the validity of the estimates of its mass, size, and temperature. Moreover, some suggested that there are alternative and more conventional explanations for the phenomena that Dokuchaev attributed to the micro black hole, such as the radioactive decay of elements in the mantle, the dynamo effect of the electric currents in the outer core, and the thermal and gravitational interactions between the inner and outer core.

What If We Could Harness the Power of a Micro Black Hole?

Despite the controversy and uncertainty surrounding the existence of a micro black hole at the centre of the Earth, some people have speculated about the potential benefits and risks of harnessing its power for human purposes. If we could somehow access and control the micro black hole, we could use it as a source of unlimited and clean energy, by extracting the heat and radiation that it produces. This could revolutionize the fields of science, technology, and engineering, and solve the problems of energy scarcity and environmental pollution.

However, there are also many dangers and challenges associated with this scenario. First of all, we would need to develop the technology and the methods to reach and manipulate the micro black hole, which would require a lot of resources and expertise. Secondly, we would need to ensure the safety and security of the operation, to avoid any accidents or attacks that could cause the micro black hole to escape or explode, with catastrophic consequences for the Earth and its inhabitants. Thirdly, we would need to deal with the ethical and social implications of exploiting a natural phenomenon that may have a profound impact on the Earth’s system and life.

Conclusion

The possibility of a micro black hole at the centre of the Earth is a fascinating and controversial topic that raises many questions and challenges for our understanding of the universe and our planet. While there is no conclusive evidence for or against this hypothesis, it invites us to explore the limits of our knowledge and imagination, and to consider the implications of our discoveries and inventions for our future. Whether there is a black hole inside the Earth or not, we can still marvel at the wonders and mysteries of the cosmos, and strive to learn more about them.