View source for Physics:Kugelblitz (astrophysics)

{{short description|Black hole created from the concentration of energy}}

A <!--Schwarzschild -->'''kugelblitz''' ({{IPA-de|ˈkuːɡl̩ˌblɪt͡s|lang|De-Kugelblitz.ogg}}) is a [[Physics:Theoretical physics|theoretical]] astrophysical object predicted by [[Physics:General relativity|general relativity]]. It is a concentration of [[Physics:Heat|heat]], [[Physics:Light|light]] or [[Physics:Radiation|radiation]] so intense that its energy forms an [[Astronomy:Event horizon|event horizon]] and becomes self-trapped. In other words, if enough [[Physics:Radiation|radiation]] is aimed into a region of space, the concentration of energy can warp [[Physics:Spacetime|spacetime]] so much that it creates a [[Astronomy:Black hole|black hole]]. This would be a black hole whose original [[Mass–energy equivalence|mass–energy]] was in the form of [[Physics:Radiant energy|radiant energy]] rather than matter,<ref>{{cite journal |last=Senovilla|first=J.M.M. |year=2014 |title=Black hole formation by incoming electromagnetic radiation |journal=[[Physics:Classical and Quantum Gravity|Classical and Quantum Gravity]] |doi=10.1088/0264-9381/32/1/017001 |volume=32 |issue=1 |pages=017001|arxiv=1408.2778|bibcode=2015CQGra..32a7001S|s2cid=119266727 }}</ref> however as soon as it forms, it is indistinguishable from an ordinary black hole.

[[Biography:John Archibald Wheeler|John Archibald Wheeler]]'s 1955 ''[[Physics:Physical Review|Physical Review]]'' paper entitled "[[Physics:Geon|Geons]]" refers to the kugelblitz phenomenon and explores the idea of creating such particles (or [[Physics:Toy model|toy model]]s of particles) from [[Physics:Spacetime|spacetime]] curvature.<ref name = Wheeler1955PhysRev>{{cite journal |last=Wheeler |first=J. A. |year=1955 |title=Geons |journal=[[Physics:Physical Review|Physical Review]] |doi=10.1103/PhysRev.97.511 |bibcode = 1955PhRv...97..511W |volume=97 |issue=2 |pages=511–536}}</ref>

The kugelblitz phenomenon has been considered a possible basis for interstellar engines (drives) for future [[Engineering:Black hole starship|black hole starship]]s.<ref>{{YouTube |id=EzZGPCyrpSU |''5 REAL Possibilities for Interstellar Travel''}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=Lee|first=J.S. |year=2013 |title=The effect of Hawking Radiation on Fermion re-inflation of a Schwarzschild Kugelblitz |journal=[[Organization:Journal of the British Interplanetary Society|Journal of the British Interplanetary Society]] |volume=66  |pages=364–376
}}</ref>{{primary source inline|date = July 2022}}

== In Fiction ==
* A kugelblitz is a major plot point in the third season of the American superhero television series The Umbrella Academy.

== See also ==
* [[Astronomy:Bekenstein bound|Bekenstein bound]]
* [[Astronomy:Micro black hole|Micro black hole]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

{{Black holes}}

[[Category:Black holes]]
[[Category:General relativity]]
[[Category:Light]]



{{Sourceattribution|Kugelblitz (astrophysics)}}