However, in the special case of a high-spin black hole, a dramatic simplification takes place. The proliferation of tunable parameters and model-dependent assumptions can make it difficult to extract physical predictions or intuition from numerics. Instead, extensive numerical simulation is required in order to properly account for myriad physical ingredients. As a result, analytic computation is in most cases completely infeasible. This task is further complicated by the need to make numerous assumptions regarding the black hole’s environment, such as the surrounding matter distribution and its radiative properties. The determination of the optical and polarimetric image of a generic black hole is in general an arduous task, as one must account for a multitude of complex astrophysical effects. The present work concerns this polarimetric image, which has received comparatively less attention. The EHT will also measure the polarization of incident light, which is expected to carry important information about dynamics in the region surrounding the black hole. The optical appearance of the black hole is largely determined by the brightness of the surrounding emission region, and has been the focus of intense investigation. The data collected by the EHT will provide a wealth of information about the electromagnetic emissions from the black hole’s vicinity. This offers an unprecedented opportunity for theorists to make predictions: What will the images look like? As its capabilities improve, the EHT will eventually resolve the near-horizon regions of these black holes with a few dozen pixels at the horizon scale. Meanwhile, in the arena of electromagnetic astronomy, the event horizon telescope (EHT) has recently delivered the first-ever up-close pictures of the supermassive black hole at the centre of the galaxy Messier 87 (M87*) and will soon release images of the black hole at the centre of our own galaxy (Sagittarius A*). With its celebrated detection of gravitational waves from a binary black hole merger, the LIGO collaboration has provided scientists with a radically new tool to study black holes. Observational black hole astronomy is entering an exciting era of rapid progress.
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