NASA explains: what if you fall into a black hole?

What happens if you fall into a black hole, according to NASA, How it’s made, Singularity, Supermassive black holes, Intermediate black holes, Fabric of space, Black hole shadow, Jet emissions, Simulation, Approaching a black hole, Spaghettification, Time from inside, Outside communication, Approaching the singularity, Theoretical quantum effects

You would not survive this force of nature

What happens if you fall into a black hole, according to NASA

What happens if you fall into a black hole, according to NASA, How it’s made, Singularity, Supermassive black holes, Intermediate black holes, Fabric of space, Black hole shadow, Jet emissions, Simulation, Approaching a black hole, Spaghettification, Time from inside, Outside communication, Approaching the singularity, Theoretical quantum effects

A black hole is truly one of the most mysterious celestial phenomena known to man. Not only are they physically shrouded in darkness, but their creation leaves many questions that science is partly unable to answer. However, black holes exist alongside the physical laws of the universe, and some answers are definitely within reach.

What are black holes? What is the science around their existence? And what would happen if you fell into one of them? Click through this gallery to find the answers!

How it’s made

What happens if you fall into a black hole, according to NASA, How it’s made, Singularity, Supermassive black holes, Intermediate black holes, Fabric of space, Black hole shadow, Jet emissions, Simulation, Approaching a black hole, Spaghettification, Time from inside, Outside communication, Approaching the singularity, Theoretical quantum effects

Black holes form when massive stars exhaust their nuclear fuel and collapse under the weight of their own gravity. This collapse causes the core to compress into an infinitely dense point called a singularity, surrounded by an event horizon.

Singularity

What happens if you fall into a black hole, according to NASA, How it’s made, Singularity, Supermassive black holes, Intermediate black holes, Fabric of space, Black hole shadow, Jet emissions, Simulation, Approaching a black hole, Spaghettification, Time from inside, Outside communication, Approaching the singularity, Theoretical quantum effects

At the center of a black hole lies the singularity, a point of infinite density where the laws of physics as we know them break down. The singularity is where the star's mass has been compressed into an infinitely small space.

Supermassive black holes

What happens if you fall into a black hole, according to NASA, How it’s made, Singularity, Supermassive black holes, Intermediate black holes, Fabric of space, Black hole shadow, Jet emissions, Simulation, Approaching a black hole, Spaghettification, Time from inside, Outside communication, Approaching the singularity, Theoretical quantum effects

Supermassive black holes are millions to billions of times the mass of the Sun, and reside at the centers of galaxies, including our Milky Way. Many scientists are still debating and researching their formation, but they are crucial components in the evolution of galaxies.

Intermediate black holes

What happens if you fall into a black hole, according to NASA, How it’s made, Singularity, Supermassive black holes, Intermediate black holes, Fabric of space, Black hole shadow, Jet emissions, Simulation, Approaching a black hole, Spaghettification, Time from inside, Outside communication, Approaching the singularity, Theoretical quantum effects

Intermediate black holes are believed to form through the merging of smaller black holes or through the collapse of massive star clusters. They serve as a bridge in size between stellar and supermassive black holes.

Quasars

What happens if you fall into a black hole, according to NASA, How it’s made, Singularity, Supermassive black holes, Intermediate black holes, Fabric of space, Black hole shadow, Jet emissions, Simulation, Approaching a black hole, Spaghettification, Time from inside, Outside communication, Approaching the singularity, Theoretical quantum effects

Quasars are extremely bright and distant objects powered by supermassive black holes at the centers of young galaxies. The intense radiation comes from the buildup of matter, which releases vast amounts of energy as it falls into the black hole.

Fabric of space

What happens if you fall into a black hole, according to NASA, How it’s made, Singularity, Supermassive black holes, Intermediate black holes, Fabric of space, Black hole shadow, Jet emissions, Simulation, Approaching a black hole, Spaghettification, Time from inside, Outside communication, Approaching the singularity, Theoretical quantum effects

Imagine that the infinity of space is nothing more than a piece of fabric, and each celestial body (stars, planets, black holes) is a marble sitting on top. Compared with other celestial objects, black holes are a lot heavier, and their presence distorts the very fabric of space.

Black hole shadow

What happens if you fall into a black hole, according to NASA, How it’s made, Singularity, Supermassive black holes, Intermediate black holes, Fabric of space, Black hole shadow, Jet emissions, Simulation, Approaching a black hole, Spaghettification, Time from inside, Outside communication, Approaching the singularity, Theoretical quantum effects

In 2019, the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) captured the first-ever image of a black hole's shadow, providing direct visual evidence of a black hole's existence. The image was of the black hole at the center of galaxy Messier 87, and has been heralded as a monumental breakthrough in astrophysics.

Jet emissions

What happens if you fall into a black hole, according to NASA, How it’s made, Singularity, Supermassive black holes, Intermediate black holes, Fabric of space, Black hole shadow, Jet emissions, Simulation, Approaching a black hole, Spaghettification, Time from inside, Outside communication, Approaching the singularity, Theoretical quantum effects

Some black holes produce powerful jets of particles and radiation that shoot out from their poles. These jets can extend for thousands of light-years and are thought to be powered by the black hole's rotation and magnetic fields.

Simulation

What happens if you fall into a black hole, according to NASA, How it’s made, Singularity, Supermassive black holes, Intermediate black holes, Fabric of space, Black hole shadow, Jet emissions, Simulation, Approaching a black hole, Spaghettification, Time from inside, Outside communication, Approaching the singularity, Theoretical quantum effects

Earlier this year, NASA created a simulation of what it would look like to fall into a supermassive black hole that is 4.3 million times the mass of our Sun. That is equivalent to the black hole currently at the center of the Milky Way galaxy.

Image credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/J. Schnittman and B. Powell

Approaching a black hole

What happens if you fall into a black hole, according to NASA, How it’s made, Singularity, Supermassive black holes, Intermediate black holes, Fabric of space, Black hole shadow, Jet emissions, Simulation, Approaching a black hole, Spaghettification, Time from inside, Outside communication, Approaching the singularity, Theoretical quantum effects

As you approach a black hole, you would feel a major increase in gravity. The black hole's immense gravitational forces would begin to distort your perception of time and space, making the environment around you increasingly bizarre and surreal.

Spaghettification

What happens if you fall into a black hole, according to NASA, How it’s made, Singularity, Supermassive black holes, Intermediate black holes, Fabric of space, Black hole shadow, Jet emissions, Simulation, Approaching a black hole, Spaghettification, Time from inside, Outside communication, Approaching the singularity, Theoretical quantum effects

Once close enough, the differential gravitational forces (known as tidal forces) would become extreme. The gravitational pull on your feet would be much stronger than on your head, stretching the body into a long, thin shape in a process called spaghettification.

Time from inside

What happens if you fall into a black hole, according to NASA, How it’s made, Singularity, Supermassive black holes, Intermediate black holes, Fabric of space, Black hole shadow, Jet emissions, Simulation, Approaching a black hole, Spaghettification, Time from inside, Outside communication, Approaching the singularity, Theoretical quantum effects

As you fall, time would seem to continue normally, but you would observe the universe outside speeding up dramatically. The entire future history of the universe could play out in what seems like a short time.

Outside communication

What happens if you fall into a black hole, according to NASA, How it’s made, Singularity, Supermassive black holes, Intermediate black holes, Fabric of space, Black hole shadow, Jet emissions, Simulation, Approaching a black hole, Spaghettification, Time from inside, Outside communication, Approaching the singularity, Theoretical quantum effects

Communication with the outside world would cease as signals could no longer escape the black hole's gravitational grip. Any attempts to send messages back would fail, leaving you isolated from the rest of the universe.

Approaching the singularity

What happens if you fall into a black hole, according to NASA, How it’s made, Singularity, Supermassive black holes, Intermediate black holes, Fabric of space, Black hole shadow, Jet emissions, Simulation, Approaching a black hole, Spaghettification, Time from inside, Outside communication, Approaching the singularity, Theoretical quantum effects

After crossing the event horizon, you would continue to fall towards the singularity at the center of the black hole. The gravitational forces would increase further, compressing and stretching your body even more intensely.

Theoretical quantum effects

What happens if you fall into a black hole, according to NASA, How it’s made, Singularity, Supermassive black holes, Intermediate black holes, Fabric of space, Black hole shadow, Jet emissions, Simulation, Approaching a black hole, Spaghettification, Time from inside, Outside communication, Approaching the singularity, Theoretical quantum effects

Some theories suggest that quantum effects near the singularity could create a "firewall" of intense energy that would vaporize anything that reaches this point. However, this is still a topic of intense debate and remains speculative.

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