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How black hole thought experiments help explain the Universe | Aeon Essays

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The Universe cannot always be understood through observation. Instead, physicists explore by devising thought experiments

Albert Einstein’s theory of gravitation, known as general relativity, is intimidating, even for highly trained theoretical physicists. In his theory, matter and energy cause space-time to curve. In most situations, this warping is so small as to be unobservable, even with powerful and sophisticated instruments. In fact, for many years after Einstein put forth his theory in 1916, there were only three situations in which small corrections to Newton’s classic laws of gravity (the force we feel here on Earth) could be observed: the bending of light by the Sun during a solar eclipse; a small…

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