GW230820_212515
Gravitational-wave source · GWTC-4.1
A black hole of about 92 solar masses, formed on 2023-08-20 when two black holes of roughly 62 and 34 solar masses spiralled together 13.0 billion light-years away. LIGO and Virgo felt the collision as ripples in spacetime.
Computed render92.0 ☉
mass (the Sun = 1)
272 km
event-horizon radius (computed)
13.0 billion ly
from Earth
62+34 ☉
the two that merged
The two black holes that merged were about 62 (46–85) and 34 (16–52) solar masses. The remnant is 92 (76–112) 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 272 km in radius. The waves we detected had been travelling for 13.0 billion years before they reached us.
Black holes of similar mass
GW230914_111401Gravitational-wave source91.2 ☉GW190929_012149Gravitational-wave source90.3 ☉GW190701_203306Gravitational-wave source90.2 ☉GW241225_082815Gravitational-wave source94.0 ☉GW241116_151753Gravitational-wave source95.0 ☉GW231004_232346Gravitational-wave source96.0 ☉
Source: Gravitational-Wave Open Science Center (GWTC-4.1), LIGO Virgo KAGRA. CC BY 4.0. See data & analysis for full sourcing.