Scientists measure black hole merger recoil for the first time

Scientists have measured the "kick" a newly formed black hole receives after a merger for the first time. This recoil, caused by asymmetric gravitational waves, can propel the combined black hole at thousands of kilometers per second. The study, published in Nature Astronomy, analyzed data from LIGO and Virgo observatories for a 2019 merger of two black holes with significantly different masses. This asymmetry in gravitational wave emission resulted in a measurable recoil velocity. Gravitational waves, predicted by Einstein, were first detected in 2015. This new measurement provides crucial insights into the violent dynamics of black hole mergers and the resulting motion of supermassive objects.