INTRODUCTION

What is Hawking radiation? Where does it come from? How does it affect a black hole? These are all complicated questions but warrant a full explanation. In this article, we’ll explore all of these questions and more!

THE ANATOMY

Let’s start with black holes. For these purposes, we will keep the anatomy of a black hole fairly simple. We will only mention the singularity and event horizon. According to NASA science, the event horizon is like the surface of a black hole. It never lets anything back out because of the immense gravitational force of a black hole. Once matter crosses its threshold, it is doomed. Next, we will talk about the singularity. This is the center of the black hole. It is where matter is compressed “to infinite density” (NASA). To help, you can imagine a circle with a dot right in the middle. The dot represents the singularity, and the edge of the circle is the event horizon.

THE THEORY

Hawking radiation is a complicated subject. In the simplest sense, it is radiation that is emitted from a black hole. Certain subatomic particles spontaneously pop up and form pairs, called virtual pairs. This consists of a particle and an antiparticle. If this happens near the event horizon of a black hole, then one will be drawn in by the gravitational force and the other will be expelled as radiation. As the black hole engulfs the other particle, it deteriorates. Why? Well, Forbes explains it best.  

“Blackbody radiation is emitted in the space surrounding a black hole’s event horizon. And the smaller the event horizon is, the greater the curvature of space near the event horizon is, and thus the greater the rate of Hawking radiation.”

For context, blackbody radiation is the relationship between something’s electromagnetic wavelength and temperature. Hawking radiation is a type of blackbody radiation. 

FACT OR FICTION?

Well, is Hawking radiation fact or fiction? This is a difficult question. Most scientists accept this theory as fact, but it is yet to be observationally confirmed. This means that while many people believe it, hawking radiation has not been proven. So, in the end, it’s up to you to decide! 

REFERENCES

1. Britannica. “Hawking Radiation | Astronomy.” Encyclopedia Britannica, 4 Nov. 2024, www.britannica.com/science/Hawking-radiation.
2. Stuart, Colin. “What Is Hawking Radiation?” Www.skyatnightmagazine.com, 24 Jan. 2024, www.skyatnightmagazine.com/space-science/hawking-radiation.  
3. NASA. “Black Hole Anatomy – NASA Science.” Science.nasa.gov, NASA, May 2024, science.nasa.gov/universe/black-holes/anatomy/. 
4. Susskind, Leonard. 2009. The Black Hole War : My Battle with Stephen Hawking to Make the World Safe for Quantum Mechanics. New York, Ny: Back Bay Books.
5. Siegel, Ethan. “Ask Ethan: How Do Hawking Radiation and Relativistic Jets Escape from a Black Hole?” Forbes, www.forbes.com/sites/startswithabang/2018/01/20/ask-ethan-how-do-hawking-radiation-and-relativistic-jets-escape-from-a-black-hole/.
6. Las Cumbres Observatory. “Black-Body Radiation | Las Cumbres Observatory.” Lco.global, 2019, lco.global/spacebook/light/black-body-radiation/.
7. Siegel, Ethan. “Ask Ethan: How Do Black Holes Actually Evaporate?” Forbes, 3 Nov. 2018, www.forbes.com/sites/startswithabang/2018/11/03/ask-ethan-how-do-black-holes-actually-evaporate/#691bfc3d24a1. Accessed 4 Mar. 2025. 
8. Feldman, Andrey. “Black Hole Morsels Could Make Hawking Radiation Detectable with Current Telescopes – Advanced Science News.” Advanced Science News, 6 June 2024, www.advancedsciencenews.com/black-hole-morsels-could-make-hawking-radiation-detectable-with-current-telescopes/.