Added 1 new A* page:Scientists have found a new likely black hole closest to Earth: Gaia BH1 is 1,555.8 light years away, beating out the next-nearest likely black hole, A0620-00, which is 3000 light years away. As with most black holes, the existence of these black holes was inferred by their gravitational pull on their binary partner; nothing known to science could account for the orbit of the other star besides a black hole. According to Wikipedia's list of the known black holes nearest to Earth, an even closer candidate, V Puppis, thought to be a trinary system 960 light years away, was announced in 2008, but the evidence for a third body there being a black hole has been less convincing; a 2021 study failed to confirm that a third body there has to be a black hole, only going so far as to say that the readings indicate "the presence of third light from a star that is cooler than those of the close binary." ~~~~~~~~~ The original 16" x 6.75" watercolor art for today's new A* page is up for auction on eBay. : )
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