If you stumbled upon a black hole and found yourself falling feet-first toward its center, then as you got closer, the black hole’s force of gravity would grow astronomically. Curiously, you would not feel this force at all because, like anything in free fall, you are weightless. What you do feel, however, is something far more sinister. While you fall, the black hole’s force of gravity at your two feet, they being closer to the black hole’s center, accelerates them faster than does the weaker force of gravity at your head. The difference between the two is known officially as the tidal force, which grows precipitously as you draw nearer to the black hole’s center. For Earth, and for most cosmic places, the tidal force across the length of your body is minuscule and goes unnoticed. But in your feet-first fall toward a black hole the tidal forces are all you notice. Which sentence from the excerpt best supports the idea that falling into a black hole would be excruciatingly painful?
Curiously, you would not feel this force at all because, like anything in free fall, you are weightless.
What you do feel, however, is something far more sinister.
For Earth, and for most cosmic places, the tidal force across the length of your body is minuscule and goes unnoticed.
But in your feet-first fall toward a black hole the tidal forces are all you notice.