GW200220_061928
Gravitational-wave source · GWTC-3-confident
A black hole of about 141 solar masses, formed on 2020-02-20 when two black holes of roughly 87 and 61 solar masses spiralled together 19.6 billion light-years away. LIGO and Virgo felt the collision as ripples in spacetime.
Computed render141 ☉
mass (the Sun = 1)
416 km
event-horizon radius (computed)
19.6 billion ly
from Earth
87+61 ☉
the two that merged
The two black holes that merged were about 87 (64–127) and 61 (36–87) solar masses. The remnant is 141 (110–192) 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 416 km in radius. The waves we detected had been travelling for 19.6 billion years before they reached us.
Black holes of similar mass
GW231028_153006Gravitational-wave source144 ☉GW190521Gravitational-wave source147 ☉GW230704_212616Gravitational-wave source132 ☉GW231005_021030Gravitational-wave source127 ☉GW230922_040658Gravitational-wave source119 ☉GW190426_190642Gravitational-wave source173 ☉
Source: Gravitational-Wave Open Science Center (GWTC-3-confident), LIGO Virgo KAGRA. CC BY 4.0. See data & analysis for full sourcing.