Related papers: The Black Hole Mass Gap as a New Probe of Millicha…
This article reviews the current status of black hole astrophysics, focusing on topics of interest to a physics audience. Astronomers have discovered dozens of compact objects with masses greater than 3 solar masses, the likely maximum mass…
Gravitational waves (GWs) from the inspiral of compact remnants (CRs) into massive black holes (MBHs) will be observable to cosmological distances. While a CR spirals in, 2-body scattering by field stars may cause it to fall into the MBH…
Massive black holes are thought to reside at the centres of many galaxies, where they power quasars and active galactic nuclei. But most galaxies are quiescent, indicating that any central massive black hole present will be starved of fuel…
We use dynamical mass measurements of 16 black holes in transient low-mass X-ray binaries to infer the stellar black hole mass distribution in the parent population. We find that the observations are best described by a narrow mass…
Masses of black holes in nearby galactic nuclei can be measured in a variety of ways, using stellar and gaseous kinematics. Reliable black hole masses are known for several dozen objects, so that demographic questions can start to be…
In this paper, we fist consider the shadow radius of a quantum corrected black hole proposed recently, and provide a bound on the correction parameter based on the observational data of Sgr A*. Then, the effects of the correction parameter…
It is assumed that superheavy dark matter particles (SHDM, $\phi$) with $\mathcal{O}$(ZeV) mass may decay to relativistic milli-charged particles (MCPs, $\chi$) via a channel $\phi\to\chi\bar{\chi}$ or $\gamma\chi\bar{\chi}$. The…
We model the dynamical structure of M87 (NGC4486) using high spatial resolution long-slit observations of stellar light in the central regions, two-dimensional stellar light kinematics out to half of the effective radius, and globular…
In binary black-hole mergers from isolated binary-star evolution, both black holes are from progenitor stars that have lost their hydrogen-rich envelopes by binary mass transfer. Envelope stripping is known to affect the pre-supernova core…
In this research paper, we scrutinize the center of mass energy of the collision for three neutral particles with different rest masses falling freely from rest at infinity in the vicinity of a Kerr-Modified-Gravity black hole. In addition,…
Highly spinning Kerr black holes with masses $M = 1 - 100\ M_{\odot}$ are subject to an efficient superradiant instability in the presence of bosons with masses $\mu \sim 10^{-10} - 10^{-12}\ {\rm eV}$. We observe that this matches the…
Scattering of particles in the gravitational field of rotating black holes is considered. Expressions for scattering energy of particles in the centre of mass system are obtained. It is shown that scattering energy of particles in the…
Massive black holes (MBHs), with masses in the range 10^3-10^8 Msolar, which merge with a companion black hole of similar mass are expected to be the most powerful source of gravitational radiation in the frequency range probed by LISA. MBH…
As part of the Megamaser Cosmology Project (MCP), we present VLBI maps of nuclear water masers toward five galaxies. The masers originate in sub-parsec circumnuclear disks. For three of the galaxies, we fit Keplerian rotation curves to…
We study the circular orbits of charged particles around a weakly charged Kerr black hole immersed in a weak, axisymmetric magnetic field. Firstly, we review the circular orbits of neutral particles. We then review the circular orbits of…
We present new evolutionary models of primordial very massive stars, with initial masses ranging from $100\,\mathrm{{M}_{\odot}}$ to $1000\,\mathrm{{M}_{\odot}}$, that extend from the main sequence until the onset of dynamical instability…
We explore possible systematic errors in the mass measurements of stellar mass black holes. We find that significant errors can arise from the assumption of zero or constant emission from the accretion flow, which is commonly used when…
The compact remnants of core collapse supernovae - neutron stars and black holes - have properties that reflect both the structure of their stellar progenitors and the physics of the explosion. In particular, the masses of these remnants…
We analyse the current knowledge and uncertainties in detailed stellar evolution and wind modelling to evaluate the mass of the most massive stellar black hole (BH) at solar metallicity. Contrary to common expectations that it is the most…
The motions of gas and stars in the nuclei of nearby large galaxies have demonstrated that massive black holes are common and that their masses strongly correlate with the stellar velocity dispersion $\sigma_{\star}$ of the bulge. This…