Penrose process

Common card · No. 231192

The Penrose process (also called Penrose mechanism) is theorised by Sir Roger Penrose as a means whereby energy can be extracted from a rotating black hole. The process takes advantage of the ergosphere – a region of spacetime around the black hole dragged by its rotation faster than the speed of light, meaning that from the point of view of an outside observer any matter inside is forced to move in the direction of the rotation of the black hole. In the process, a working body falls (black thick line in the figure) into the ergosphere (gray region). At its lowest point (red dot) the body fires a propellant backwards; however, to a faraway observer both seem to continue to move forward due to frame-dragging (albeit at different speeds). The propellant, being slowed, falls (thin gray line) to the event horizon of the black hole (black disk). The remains of the body, being sped up, fly away (thin black line) with an excess of energy (that more than offsets the loss of the propellant and...

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