GW190521_074359
Gravitational-wave source · GWTC-2.1-confident
A black hole of about 73 solar masses, formed on 2019-05-21 when two black holes of roughly 43 and 33 solar masses spiralled together 3.5 billion light-years away. LIGO and Virgo felt the collision as ripples in spacetime.
Computed render72.6 ☉
mass (the Sun = 1)
214 km
event-horizon radius (computed)
3.5 billion ly
from Earth
43+33 ☉
the two that merged
The two black holes that merged were about 43 (38–49) and 33 (27–39) solar masses. The remnant is 73 (67–79) 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 214 km in radius. The waves we detected had been travelling for 3.5 billion years before they reached us.
Black holes of similar mass
GW241230_084504Gravitational-wave source72.4 ☉GW190805_211137Gravitational-wave source72.4 ☉GW240621_214041Gravitational-wave source73.0 ☉GW231223_032836Gravitational-wave source73.0 ☉GW231221_135041Gravitational-wave source73.0 ☉GW241102_144729Gravitational-wave source72.0 ☉
Source: Gravitational-Wave Open Science Center (GWTC-2.1-confident), LIGO Virgo KAGRA. CC BY 4.0. See data & analysis for full sourcing.