Five key concepts for you to better understand Interstellar

The black hole as seen in the movie Interstellar is said to be the most scientifically accurate black hole envisaged on film. [Photo/ movie.mtime.com]

Black hole

According to a definition from NASA, a black hole is a place in space where gravity pulls so much that even light cannot get out. The gravity is so strong because matter has been squeezed into a tiny space. This can happen when a star is dying. Kip Thorne said weird things happen near black holes. Their gravity is so strong that they bend light and pull space and time with it.

For example, in the movie, the planet Miller is under the strong influence of the black hole Gargantua. As a result, it causes gravitational time dilation, that's why they say one hour on the planet Miller is seven years back on earth. Meanwhile, the tidal force is able to create large waves due to the gravity of the black hole.