Ancient Black Holes Could Burst into White Holes ⚡ экспресс
The volume rate of quantum tunnelling of primordial black holes into white holes is calculated, accounting for Hawking evaporation, cosmological depletion, realistic abundance constraints, and extended mass functions, including the 'memory burden' scenario. The maximum occurs when the effective black hole lifetime is comparable to the age of the Universe. In the range of tunnelling times typical of Planck stars, fast radio burst rates arise only in two narrow regions: near the evaporation boundary for low masses and in a sequential scenario (evaporation before tunnelling); extending the mass function does not change the picture. Analysis of repeatability, spectra, gamma-ray, and gravitational-wave observations shows that white holes can only make a subordinate contribution, not dominate. The overall event rate does not match the observed burst density without fine-tuning of parameters and strong dependence on assumptions.
Some black holes are remnants from the Big Bang. Usually they fade via a slow radiation leak—predicted by Stephen Hawking. But a quantum switch could invert them into white holes, explosively releasing all energy like popcorn kernels that suddenly pop.
A new study calculates this switch’s likelihood, factoring in the warping of space and cosmic expansion. The pop rate peaks only when a black hole’s lifetime matches the universe’s age—exactly timed, like popcorn in hot oil. Astronomers tested whether these pops cause mysterious fast radio bursts—brief, intense blips from deep space. Match? Barely: only in a sliver of cases, with very light black holes or those vanishing before the flip.
So the cosmic popper rarely delivers. Observations from gravitational waves to gamma rays dismiss white holes as the prime burst culprit. Yet here’s the twist: a black hole primed to pop would be tinier than an atom but as heavy as a mountain. The takeaway? It sharpens the hunt for these improbable cosmic flashes.
🎯 An ancient black hole could be smaller than an atom yet weigh as much as a mountain.
🎬 In the sci-fi comedy Red Dwarf, a white hole makes time flow backwards.