A rotating black hole is a cosmic whirlpool that sucks in everything around it. Some of these holes have invisible threads that stretch from the event horizon like spokes from a wheel. Scientists have long debated what these threads are and whether they can be observed.
In a new study, physicists have shown that these threads are not just a mathematical artifact. Streams of electric and magnetic fields flow along them, but unevenly. This causes electric charge to accumulate on the threads, like on a charged comb. Around the black hole, a cloud of charged particles forms that can be detected with instruments.
The most surprising part: the rotation of the hole alone, without any extra ingredients, can create these threads. The black hole spins, and electric fields spontaneously arise around it. This changes our understanding of how black holes interact with the surrounding space.
Misner strings are named after mathematician Charles W. Misner, who first described them in 1963 as a purely geometric construction — no one thought they could be physically observable.