Pupils from Craigour Park Primary School in Edinburgh interviewed some of our staff and PhD students about their research. In this article, they quiz PhD student Ben Maybee about some of the strangest objects in the universe: black holes.
Some scientists predict that if a human enters a black hole, they might enter another dimension. Is this true?
This depends if they believe the movie Interstellar or not. Possibly though. I think black holes are beyond our understanding, so they could do. You couldn’t see inside, and you can’t test it either.
How powerful is the gravitational force of black holes?
How powerful? Really powerful! For instance, light cannot escape it. So, imagine if the black hole was near the sun…
In space, is the black hole really strong enough to suck up a planet?
Oh yeah! But only if it gets close enough. It is not the case that there is a black hole somewhere and everyone is going to go on a path which takes you within it.
Has a black hole ever encountered our atmosphere?
No! Otherwise we wouldn’t be here.
What is your favourite star?
I do really like Betelgeuse. I like it because it is red, and it is the size of the orbit of Jupiter. It is on the top right of Orion.
If you had the choice which one would you choose? Climbing in the Highlands, playing the piano or reading a book?
I would climb in the Highlands. I definitely didn’t ditch University to go hiking on Thursday…
If you could work with any scientist dead or alive, which scientist would you work with?
A scientist called Robert. He worked on the structure of the earth.
Can you play any Beethoven pieces?
I can play Moonlight Sonata.
Do you have any siblings? If yes, are they also scientists?
I have a brother but he does not work as a scientist.
Links and resources
- Check out all our Craigour Park Primary School interviews.
- Read more about this project with Craigour Park Primary School, Edinburgh.
- Learn more about Ben’s research.