Two supermassive black holes are locked in an orbital dance at the core of the distant galaxy OJ 287. This diagram shows their sizes relative to the solar system. The larger one, with about 18 billion times the mass of our sun (right), would encompass all the planets in the solar system with room to spare. The smaller one is about 150 million times the mass of our sun (left), which would be large enough to swallow up everything out to the asteroid belt, just inside the orbit of Jupiter.

https://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/image/ssc2020-11b-sizes-of-black-holes-in-galaxy-oj-287-relative-to-the-solar-system

  • @GraniteM
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    101 month ago

    What does “size” mean in the context of a black hole? Is that the size of their event horizons?

    • @Carrolade
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      101 month ago

      Yes, they’re talking about the volume encompassed by the event horizon.