M87* black hole image reanalysis confirms Einstein's general relativity

September 12, 2026 at 05:57 PM2 min

This digest was compiled by AI from multiple sources — links to the originals are below.

Scientists reanalyzed the 2018 M87* black hole observation, confirming the shadow size remained unchanged and consistent with Einstein's general relativity. The bright ring's brightest region shifted about 30 degrees between 2017 and 2018, indicating matter movement around the black hole.

Key Facts

The reanalysis of the April 2018 M87* observation took six years to process 250 petabytes of data from radio telescopes worldwide.
The shadow size at the center of M87* remained unchanged between 2017 and 2018, matching Einstein's equations relating event horizon diameter to black hole mass.
The brightest region of the bright ring shifted about 30 degrees between the two observations, confirming matter movement around M87*.
M87* is located about 55 million light-years from Earth at the center of the Messier 87 galaxy.
The next-generation Event Horizon Telescope project aims to produce higher-resolution images and the first video of black holes in the coming years.

Reanalysis of 2018 Data

The Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) collaboration reanalyzed the second observation of M87* recorded in April 2018 to resolve debates about the initial 2017 image. Processing 250 petabytes of data collected from radio telescopes across different parts of the world took six years. The first image of the black hole, observed in 2017, was published in 2019, but some researchers questioned the calculation methods used.

Confirmation of Einstein's Theory

Comparison of the two photographs showed that the size of the shadow at the black hole's center did not change. This stability indicates that the relationship between the event horizon diameter and the black hole's mass is consistent with Einstein's equations. The brightest part of the bright ring shifted about 30 degrees between the two observations, confirming that matter around M87* is moving.

Future Observations

The next-generation Event Horizon Telescope project aims to produce higher-resolution images in the coming years. The project also targets recording the first video of black holes.