The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has brought us stunning insights into the universe since its launch in 2022. Recently, its discoveries have sparked excitement and curiosity among astronomers. A fascinating finding hints that the universe we see might be inside a black hole.
This $10 billion telescope has observed 263 galaxies and revealed a surprising pattern: most of them spin in the same direction. About two-thirds rotate clockwise, while the rest turn counter-clockwise. In a truly random universe, we would expect an even split. This suggests that there may be a preferred rotation direction for galaxies.
Lior Shamir, an associate professor at the Carl R. Ice College of Engineering, leads the research team behind this discovery. He mentioned two main ideas that could explain this phenomenon. One theory suggests that the universe itself was born with a spin. This aligns with “black hole cosmology,” which proposes that our universe resides inside a black hole in a larger universe.
Black hole cosmology was introduced by physicists Raj Kumar Pathria and I. J. Good. They theorized that the edge of a black hole, known as the event horizon, might also represent the boundary of our observable universe. This theory opens up intriguing possibilities: each black hole could link to new, unseen universes. However, these universes are hidden, as light cannot escape from them.
Polish physicist Nikodem Poplawski advocates this concept. He explains how black holes form from collapsing massive stars. Inside, the matter becomes so dense that it cannot condense into a singularity. Instead, it reaches a high-density state and expands, possibly causing what we think of as the Big Bang. Poplawski theorizes that this might explain our universe’s flat and uniform appearance at large scales.
Interestingly, if our universe was indeed born from a black hole, it might inherit a specific rotation axis from it. Poplawski emphasizes that the rotation of black holes influences the formation of galaxies. Thus, the observed pattern of galactic rotation might support the idea that black holes create new universes.
There is another possibility regarding the JWST’s findings. Researchers have considered that our own galaxy, the Milky Way, could influence what the telescope sees. Previously, scientists believed its rotation speed was too slow to matter, but this new finding raises questions about recalibrating our measurements of cosmic distances. Such recalibration could help clarify unsolved questions in cosmology.
The implications of these findings are vast. Exploring the relationship between black holes and galaxy formation could lead to monumental shifts in our understanding of the universe. For a deeper dive into these intriguing theories, you can check the study published in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.