GW250114: Testing Hawking’s Area Law and the Kerr Nature of Black Holes

LIGO Scientific, Virgo, and KAGRA Collaborations

doi:10.1103/kw5g-d732

GW250114: Testing Hawking’s Area Law and the Kerr Nature of Black Holes

LIGO Scientific, Virgo, and KAGRA Collaborations

Department of Physics

Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics (Albert Einstein Institute)
National Science Foundation
University of Salerno
National Institute for Nuclear Physics
University of Warwick
Monash University
Pennsylvania State University
Leibniz University Hannover
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
California Institute of Technology
Louisiana State University
Tata Institute of Fundamental Research
Aix-Marseille Université
Université catholique de Louvain
Queen Mary University of London
University of California at Davis
University of Minnesota Twin Cities
Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas Espaciais
Université Paris Cité
University of Rome Tor Vergata
University of Antwerp
National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ)
Cardiff University
Friedrich Schiller University Jena
University of Genoa
Université Savoie Mont Blanc
University of Naples Federico II
Australian National University
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Maastricht University
National Institute for Subatomic Physics
University of Rome La Sapienza
Institut Fresnel
Université Paris-Saclay
The University of Tokyo
Institute for High Energy Physics
Gran Sasso Science Institute
University of Florida
University of Udine
Instituto Tecnologico de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey
University of Camerino

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

32 Scopus citations

Abstract

The gravitational-wave signal GW250114 was observed by the two LIGO detectors with a network matched-filter signal-to-noise ratio of 80. The signal was emitted by the coalescence of two black holes with near-equal masses (Formula presented) and (Formula presented), and small spins (Formula presented) (90% credibility) and negligible eccentricity (Formula presented). Postmerger data excluding the peak region are consistent with the dominant quadrupolar (Formula presented) mode of a Kerr black hole and its first overtone. We constrain the modes’ frequencies to (Formula presented) of the Kerr spectrum, providing a test of the remnant’s Kerr nature. We also examine Hawking’s area law, also known as the second law of black hole mechanics, which states that the total area of the black hole event horizons cannot decrease with time. A range of analyses that exclude up to five of the strongest merger cycles confirm that the remnant area is larger than the sum of the initial areas to high credibility.

Original language	English
Article number	111403
Journal	Physical Review Letters
Volume	135
Issue number	11
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1103/kw5g-d732
State	Published - 12 Sep 2025

Access to Document

10.1103/kw5g-d732

Cite this

@article{9e0938db3f57411c852d892665efa7fd,

title = "GW250114: Testing Hawking{\textquoteright}s Area Law and the Kerr Nature of Black Holes",

abstract = "The gravitational-wave signal GW250114 was observed by the two LIGO detectors with a network matched-filter signal-to-noise ratio of 80. The signal was emitted by the coalescence of two black holes with near-equal masses (Formula presented) and (Formula presented), and small spins (Formula presented) (90\% credibility) and negligible eccentricity (Formula presented). Postmerger data excluding the peak region are consistent with the dominant quadrupolar (Formula presented) mode of a Kerr black hole and its first overtone. We constrain the modes{\textquoteright} frequencies to (Formula presented) of the Kerr spectrum, providing a test of the remnant{\textquoteright}s Kerr nature. We also examine Hawking{\textquoteright}s area law, also known as the second law of black hole mechanics, which states that the total area of the black hole event horizons cannot decrease with time. A range of analyses that exclude up to five of the strongest merger cycles confirm that the remnant area is larger than the sum of the initial areas to high credibility.",

author = "\{LIGO Scientific, Virgo, and KAGRA Collaborations\} and Abac, \{A. G.\} and I. Abouelfettouh and F. Acernese and K. Ackley and C. Adamcewicz and S. Adhicary and D. Adhikari and N. Adhikari and Adhikari, \{R. X.\} and Adkins, \{V. K.\} and S. Afroz and A. Agapito and D. Agarwal and M. Agathos and N. Aggarwal and S. Aggarwal and Aguiar, \{O. D.\} and Ahrend, \{I. L.\} and L. Aiello and A. Ain and P. Ajith and T. Akutsu and S. Al-Kershi and S. Al-Shammari and S. Albanesi and W. Ali and C. All{\'e}n{\'e} and A. Allocca and Altin, \{P. A.\} and S. Alvarez-Lopez and W. Amar and O. Amarasinghe and A. Amato and F. Amicucci and C. Amra and A. Ananyeva and Anderson, \{S. B.\} and Anderson, \{W. G.\} and M. Andia and M. Ando and M. Andr{\'e}s-Carcasona and T. Andri{\'c} and J. Anglin and S. Ansoldi and Antelis, \{J. M.\} and S. Antier and M. Aoumi and Appavuravther, \{E. Z.\} and S. Appert and K. Lee",

note = "Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2025 authors. Published by the American Physical Society.",

year = "2025",

month = sep,

day = "12",

doi = "10.1103/kw5g-d732",

language = "English",

volume = "135",

journal = "Physical Review Letters",

issn = "0031-9007",

publisher = "American Physical Society",

number = "11",

}

TY - JOUR

T1 - GW250114

T2 - Testing Hawking’s Area Law and the Kerr Nature of Black Holes

AU - LIGO Scientific, Virgo, and KAGRA Collaborations

AU - Abac, A. G.

AU - Abouelfettouh, I.

AU - Acernese, F.

AU - Ackley, K.

AU - Adamcewicz, C.

AU - Adhicary, S.

AU - Adhikari, D.

AU - Adhikari, N.

AU - Adhikari, R. X.

AU - Adkins, V. K.

AU - Afroz, S.

AU - Agapito, A.

AU - Agarwal, D.

AU - Agathos, M.

AU - Aggarwal, N.

AU - Aggarwal, S.

AU - Aguiar, O. D.

AU - Ahrend, I. L.

AU - Aiello, L.

AU - Ain, A.

AU - Ajith, P.

AU - Akutsu, T.

AU - Al-Kershi, S.

AU - Al-Shammari, S.

AU - Albanesi, S.

AU - Ali, W.

AU - Alléné, C.

AU - Allocca, A.

AU - Altin, P. A.

AU - Alvarez-Lopez, S.

AU - Amar, W.

AU - Amarasinghe, O.

AU - Amato, A.

AU - Amicucci, F.

AU - Amra, C.

AU - Ananyeva, A.

AU - Anderson, S. B.

AU - Anderson, W. G.

AU - Andia, M.

AU - Ando, M.

AU - Andrés-Carcasona, M.

AU - Andrić, T.

AU - Anglin, J.

AU - Ansoldi, S.

AU - Antelis, J. M.

AU - Antier, S.

AU - Aoumi, M.

AU - Appavuravther, E. Z.

AU - Appert, S.

AU - Lee, K.

PY - 2025/9/12

Y1 - 2025/9/12

N2 - The gravitational-wave signal GW250114 was observed by the two LIGO detectors with a network matched-filter signal-to-noise ratio of 80. The signal was emitted by the coalescence of two black holes with near-equal masses (Formula presented) and (Formula presented), and small spins (Formula presented) (90% credibility) and negligible eccentricity (Formula presented). Postmerger data excluding the peak region are consistent with the dominant quadrupolar (Formula presented) mode of a Kerr black hole and its first overtone. We constrain the modes’ frequencies to (Formula presented) of the Kerr spectrum, providing a test of the remnant’s Kerr nature. We also examine Hawking’s area law, also known as the second law of black hole mechanics, which states that the total area of the black hole event horizons cannot decrease with time. A range of analyses that exclude up to five of the strongest merger cycles confirm that the remnant area is larger than the sum of the initial areas to high credibility.

AB - The gravitational-wave signal GW250114 was observed by the two LIGO detectors with a network matched-filter signal-to-noise ratio of 80. The signal was emitted by the coalescence of two black holes with near-equal masses (Formula presented) and (Formula presented), and small spins (Formula presented) (90% credibility) and negligible eccentricity (Formula presented). Postmerger data excluding the peak region are consistent with the dominant quadrupolar (Formula presented) mode of a Kerr black hole and its first overtone. We constrain the modes’ frequencies to (Formula presented) of the Kerr spectrum, providing a test of the remnant’s Kerr nature. We also examine Hawking’s area law, also known as the second law of black hole mechanics, which states that the total area of the black hole event horizons cannot decrease with time. A range of analyses that exclude up to five of the strongest merger cycles confirm that the remnant area is larger than the sum of the initial areas to high credibility.

UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/105017415722

U2 - 10.1103/kw5g-d732

DO - 10.1103/kw5g-d732

M3 - Article

C2 - 41004747

AN - SCOPUS:105017415722

SN - 0031-9007

VL - 135

JO - Physical Review Letters

JF - Physical Review Letters

IS - 11

M1 - 111403

ER -

GW250114: Testing Hawking’s Area Law and the Kerr Nature of Black Holes

Abstract

Access to Document

Other files and links

Fingerprint

Cite this