Gravitational Collapse, Black Holes and Naked Singularities

TL;DR

This paper reviews gravitational collapse, black holes, and naked singularities, discussing models and the potential failure of the cosmic censorship hypothesis in classical general relativity, along with quantum considerations near singularities.

Contribution

It provides an elementary overview of collapse models leading to black holes and naked singularities, questioning the universal validity of the censorship hypothesis.

Findings

Collapse models suggest censorship may not always hold

Quantum processes near naked singularities could have observational implications

Classical general relativity may allow naked singularities to form

Abstract

This article gives an elementary review of gravitational collapse and the cosmic censorship hypothesis. Known models of collapse resulting in the formation of black holes and naked singularities are summarized. These models, when taken together, suggest that the censorship hypothesis may not hold in classical general relativity. The nature of the quantum processes that take place near a naked singularity, and their possible implication for observations, is briefly discussed.