According to NASA, black holes are places in the universe "where gravity pulls so much that even light can not get out." The space industry has held this notion close for years, but it seems that dissent is growing, and it's from a likely source. Professor Stephen Hawking is known for many things, one of which being Hawking radiation, a type of radiation that's emitted by an opaque and non-reflective body, and that he predicts is released by black holes.

Suffice it to say, when he makes a claim about these mysteries celestial objects, the rest of the world listens. The astronomical world is bursting with questions after Hawking's latest paper included a statement that read "there are no black holes." PBS did a good job of clarifying what he meant by clarifying that the feature of a black hole which has long been thought to give it its characteristically inescapable qualities might not actually exist.

The event horizon has long been understood as the point in a black hole where nothing can escape. Hawking dispels this notion by suggesting that things do escape from black holes, it just takes a really long time. That's where he gets off saying that “the absence of event horizons means that there are no black holes — in the sense of regimes from which light can’t escape to infinity” in his most recent paper.

If none of this is making sense, check out the clip from DNews below. It should help clear some things up. That being said, if you're still confused, that's perfectly fine: the experts' consensus isn't in on this one, and it'll likely be a long time until the science is certain. So let us know your impressions in the comments and be sure to share it with your friends on Facebook!