NP Black Holes

Abstract

This chapter is a discussion of the most sophisticated application of GHM, the mechanism by which a charge starved Kerr-Newman black hole and its magnetosphere can power a magnetically dominated plasma wind. It is also the most speculative astronomical application of black hole GHM. The theory was developed in order to explain the existence of a vast galactic population of EGRET (hard γ-ray sources) that are unidentified with respect to any known object detected at other frequency bands [169]. The problem is analogous to a charge starved pulsar where the neutron star electromagnetic field is replaced by the field of a Kerr-Newman black hole above the polar caps. The unidentified EGRET sources are not pulsars since they do not pulse in any frequency band (radio, X-ray, or γ-ray bands). The Kerr-Newman geometry requires that the symmetry axis of the magnetic field is aligned with the rotation axis of the black hole (unlike a neutron star), thus there can be no “lighthouse effect” and therefore no pulsations. Hence, the new distinct class of compact magnetized objects, NP (nonpulsed) black holes. The term NP black hole refers to the entire electromagnetic structure, including the central rapidly rotating Kerr-Newman black hole and the charged magnetosphere that is necessary for charge neutrality as well as protecting the black hole from electrical discharge.