Chaos may make black holes bright

Abstract

Black holes cannot be seen directly since they absorb light and emit none, the very quality which earned them their name. We suggest that black holes may be seen indirectly through a chaotic defocusing of light. A black hole can capture light from a luminous companion in chaotic orbits before scattering the light in random directions. To a distant observer, the black hole would appear to light up. If the companion were a bright radio pulsar, this estimate suggests the black hole echo could be detectible.