Idaho Skies Transcript for April 13th, 14th, and 15th

PAUL
Welcome to Idaho Skies for April 13th, 14th, and 15th. We’re your hosts, Paul...

RACHEL
...and Rachel.

PAUL
A month ago, the world lost Physicist Stephen Hawking.

RACHEL
He was one of the greatest physicist and one of this century’s most famous popularizers of science.

PAUL
Among his amazing discoveries was that black holes don’t last forever.

RACHEL
What! Wait! Black holes grow old and die?

PAUL
In a matter of speaking, yes.

RACHEL
How can a gravitational rip in the fabric of space-time just give up the ghost?

PAUL
Because over time, black holes emit radiation, like subatomic particles.

RACHEL
Well, if they’re emitting particles, then must be losing mass.

PAUL
Yep. And the rate at which they emit particles increases as they get smaller.

RACHEL
Which means they’re evaporating faster and faster all the time.

PAUL
That’s right, but only if the matter or energy falling into them is less than they are evaporating.

RACHEL
So very tiny black holes, which may or may not exist, are evaporating today.

PAUL
While stellar mass black holes continue to gain too much matter and energy to evaporate today.

RACHEL
But billions of years from now, the universe will have expanded much larger than it is today.

PAUL
And the distance between atoms in the universe will be too far apart for the gravity of black holes.

RACHEL
And the background temperature of the universe will be very close to absolute zero.

PAUL
Then large black holes will start evaporating away. 

RACHEL
That’s Idaho Skies for the 13th, 14th, and 15th of April.

PAUL
Be sure to follow us on Twitter @IdahoSkies for this week’s event reminders and sky maps.

For Idaho Skies this is Paul...

RACHEL
...and Rachel.

PAUL
Dark skies and bright stars.