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Rapid spin for giant black holes (BBC)

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eppur_se_muova Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sat Jan-12-08 03:04 AM
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Rapid spin for giant black holes (BBC)
By Paul Rincon
Science reporter, BBC News, Austin

The "supermassive" black holes at the centres of most galaxies could be spinning at a dizzying rate, new research shows.

These celestial monsters may be rotating so fast, they are close to the maximum rates allowed by Einstein's theory of relativity.

The findings are based on observations of nine giant galaxies using Nasa's Chandra X-ray telescope.

Astronomers presented the results at a meeting of the American Astronomical Society in Austin, Texas.

Their findings suggest these gigantic gravity wells complete one rotation every day.
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more: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7184526.stm
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