Can we kill a black hole?

Destroying a black hole is a highly complex and theoretically challenging concept. Here are some key points from the discussions on this topic:

Feeding Angular Momentum and Charge

To theoretically "destroy" a black hole, one would need to manipulate its angular momentum and charge to the point where the event horizon disappears. This is based on the inequality ( M^2 > (J/M)^2 + Q^2 ), where ( M ) is the mass, ( J ) is the angular momentum, and ( Q ) is the charge of the black hole. By increasing ( J ) and/or ( Q ) sufficiently, the event horizon could potentially disappear2.

Practical Challenges

However, this approach is fraught with difficulties. Feeding a black hole with angular momentum and charge creates a dynamic state, and there is no guarantee that the black hole will settle back into a steady state without shedding the added angular momentum and charge. The calculations involved are extremely complex and have yet to be fully resolved2.

Hawking Radiation

The most straightforward and naturally occurring method to "destroy" a black hole is through Hawking radiation. This process, proposed by Stephen Hawking, involves the emission of particles from the black hole due to quantum effects near the event horizon. Over time, this radiation causes the black hole to lose mass and eventually "evaporate" completely, a process known as black hole evaporation. However, this process is extremely slow, especially for larger black holes1.

Theoretical Considerations

Attempting to destroy the event horizon of a black hole would expose the singularity at its center, which is a point of infinite curvature in spacetime. This singularity indicates a breakdown in our current understanding of physics, suggesting that new theories are needed to describe such phenomena2.

In summary, while there are theoretical ways to consider the destruction of a black hole, such as manipulating its angular momentum and charge or waiting for Hawking radiation, these methods are either highly impractical or occur on timescales that are astronomically long. Therefore, in practical terms, black holes are not something that can be "killed" in any feasible manner.