Black holes are collapsed stars with a gravitational pull such that nothing – not even light – can escape once a certain threshold, known as the event horizon, has been passed. They can only be observed indirectly by the swirling matter around them, and they are thought to emit an extremely weak flow of particles and photons called the Hawking radiation. Now some of these black holes are thought to be wormholes, gateways to other universes.

Two physicists from France and Germany are studying the possibility to distinguish both astrophysical anomalies despite the technical difficulties that currently prevent them from doing so. They have theorized that the detection of both Hawking radiation and an event horizon would identify the object as a black hole, whereas the absence of both would classify it as a wormhole.

Future particle accelerator experiments should enable scientists to create microscopic black holes and test this theory. If small-size wormholes can be produced, we may see one day the fiction of Stargate become a reality. This could also revolutionize long-distance travel, like in Stephen King’s short story “The Jaunt.”

Source: New Scientist