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The future ability to test theories of gravity with black-hole shadows - NASA ADS

ui.adsabs.harvard.edu

Black-hole shadows are becoming the ultimate lab for testing whether Einstein's gravity holds at its most extreme limits — and next-gen telescopes are about to push that test to the breaking point.

General RelativityAlternative Theories of GravityBlack Hole PhysicsObservational Cosmology

Theory Briefing

  • Black-hole shadows — the dark silhouettes cast by event horizons — encode the geometry of spacetime predicted by competing theories of gravity.
  • Next-generation instruments like the Black Hole Explorer aim to resolve shadow shapes with enough precision to distinguish General Relativity from rival frameworks.
  • Even small deviations in shadow size or shape could confirm or rule out alternative gravity theories that General Relativity alone cannot settle.