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What would happen if you fell into a black hole?

What would happen if you fell into a black hole? And are sonic weapons effective? Drs Rutherford & Fry investigate

Two deadly cases today sent in by listeners to curiouscases@bbc.co.uk

The Dark Star
"What's inside a black hole and could we fly a spaceship inside?" asks Jorge Luis Alvarez from Mexico City.

Astrophysicist Sheila Rowan explains how we know invisible black holes actually exist. Plus cosmologist Andrew Pontzen is on hand to help cook one up.

But which of our intrepid doctors will volunteer to fly into the heart of a black hole?

Kate Bush’s Sonic Weapon
"It started while listening to the excellent Experiment IV by Kate Bush. The premise of the song is of a band who secretly work for the military to create a 'sound that could kill someone'. Is it scientifically possible to do this?" asks Paul Goodfield.

Hannah consults acoustic engineer Trevor Cox to ask if sonic weapons could kill. And Adam delves into subsonic frequencies with parapsychologist Chris French to investigate their spooky effects.

Plus the team investigates the Curious Case of the Embassy in Cuba – could a sonic weapon really be responsible for the wide-ranging symptoms reported by American diplomats in Havana?

You can send your scientific mysteries for the team to investigate to: curiouscases@bbc.co.uk

Picture: A computer-generated image of a rich star field with a Black Hole in front of it which distorts starlight into a brilliant ring around itself, Credit: ´óÏó´«Ã½

Producer: Michelle Martin

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26 minutes

Last on

Mon 4 Dec 2017 01:32GMT

Broadcasts

  • Mon 27 Nov 2017 20:32GMT
  • Mon 27 Nov 2017 21:32GMT
  • Tue 28 Nov 2017 05:32GMT
  • Tue 28 Nov 2017 07:32GMT
  • Tue 28 Nov 2017 15:32GMT
  • Tue 28 Nov 2017 18:32GMT
  • Wed 29 Nov 2017 03:32GMT
  • Sun 3 Dec 2017 02:32GMT
  • Mon 4 Dec 2017 01:32GMT

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