Two black hole collisions detected just a month apart last autumn are challenging our understanding of how they form. One merger features a black hole spinning backwards against its orbit while the other involves one of the fastest rotating black holes ever detected. These unusual properties suggest both are “second generation" black holes, products of earlier collisions formed in violent stellar environments. The precision measurements have also tested Einstein's general relativity changing not only our understanding of black holes but also our understanding of the cosmos.
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