GW200316_215756
Gravitational-wave source · GWTC-3-confident
A black hole of about 20 solar masses, formed on 2020-03-16 when two black holes of roughly 13 and 8 solar masses spiralled together 3.7 billion light-years away. LIGO and Virgo felt the collision as ripples in spacetime.
Computed render20.2 ☉
mass (the Sun = 1)
60 km
event-horizon radius (computed)
3.7 billion ly
from Earth
13+8 ☉
the two that merged
The two black holes that merged were about 13 (10–23) and 8 (5–10) solar masses. The remnant is 20 (18–28) solar masses. Values in parentheses are the 90% credible ranges from LIGO, Virgo and KAGRA (GWTC).
Its event horizon, the edge past which nothing returns, spans about 60 km in radius. The waves we detected had been travelling for 3.7 billion years before they reached us.
Black holes of similar mass
GW190930_133541Gravitational-wave source20.2 ☉GW240825_055146Gravitational-wave source20.3 ☉GW241009_084816Gravitational-wave source20.1 ☉GW231104_133418Gravitational-wave source20.0 ☉GW250119_190238Gravitational-wave source20.6 ☉GW151226Gravitational-wave source20.7 ☉
Source: Gravitational-Wave Open Science Center (GWTC-3-confident), LIGO Virgo KAGRA. CC BY 4.0. See data & analysis for full sourcing.