'Quantum hair' could resolve Hawking's black hole paradox, say scientists

Hannah Devlin Science correspondent
@hannahdev
Thu 17 Mar 2022 09.51 EDT

New mathematical formulation means hugeStephen Hawking’s black hole information paradox has bedevilled scientists for half a century and led some to question the fundamental laws of physics. Now scientists say they may have resolved the infamous problem by showing that black holes have a property known as “quantum hair”.

If correct, this would mark a momentous advance in theoretical physics.

Prof Xavier Calmet, of the University of Sussex, who led the work, said that after working on the mathematics behind the problem for a decade, his team made a rapid advance last year that gave them confidence that they had finally cracked it.paradigm shift in physics would not be necessary

“It was generally assumed within the scientific community that resolving this paradox would require a huge paradigm shift in physics, forcing the potential reformulation of either quantum mechanics or general relativity,” said Calmet. “What we found – and I think is particularly exciting – is that this isn’t necessary.”

More:
https://www.theguardian.com/science/2022/mar/17/quantum-hair-could-resolve-stephen-hawking-black-hole-paradox-say-scientists