What a black hole is, and what it is not.
What a black hole is, what it is not, and the two that have had their pictures taken.
Reads alone from about 8; a parent reads the margin aloud before that.
Prints in 2 to 5 business days, then 3 to 4 to your door. Shipping is $4.99 for an 18x24 and $7.99 for a 24x36, plus 40 cents for each poster after the first. US addresses only.
Checked by Rob Oller Edition 2026-10 Sources listed below
in-frameThe poster in its 18x24 frame on a painted wall, straight on, whole frame in shot.
child-heightThe poster on a kid's bedroom wall, shot from a seven-year-old's eye height, a kid reading it.
margin-close-upThe margin facts, close, sharp enough to read, to show the type size and the paper.
unboxingThe kraft box as it arrives, and the rolled poster coming out of it.
What Is On This Poster
8 factsThe facts this poster carries, so you can match it to what your kid is asking about before you buy.
- A black hole is a place where gravity is so strong that nothing, not even light, can escape.
- The edge you cannot come back from is called the event horizon.
- The black hole at the center of our galaxy, Sagittarius A*, has about 4 million times the mass of the Sun and is about 27,000 light-years away.
- The first picture of a black hole, M87*, was released in April 2019 by the Event Horizon Telescope; a picture of Sagittarius A* followed in May 2022.
- If the Sun were swapped for a black hole of the same mass, Earth would keep the same orbit (and freeze).
- A black hole with the Sun's mass would be about 6 kilometers across.
- Falling in, you would be stretched long and thin; scientists call it spaghettification.
- M87* has about 6.5 billion times the mass of the Sun and is about 55 million light-years away.
Sources
- NASA Science: Black Holes
- NASA Science: Anatomy of a black hole
- ESO: First image of the black hole at the heart of the Milky Way, 2022
- ESO: First image of a black hole (M87*), 2019
- NASA Imagine the Universe: Black holes
Every source for every poster, and every correction, is on the sources and corrections page.
Fits These Frames
in-frame-18x24The sample 18x24 in a standard 18x24 frame from a big-box store, the frame's brand visible on the back.
18 x 24 Inches
Fits a standard 18x24 frame, the usual size for art prints, sold at big-box stores.
Printed sizes can run a little over, so the design keeps everything that matters clear of the edge and the frame hides nothing.
in-frame-24x36The sample 24x36 in a standard 24x36 poster frame, on a wall, with a door or chair for scale.
24 x 36 Inches
The most common poster size in the US, and the one budget frames are made for. Readable from across a room.
The same margin rule: nothing important sits near the edge.
189 gsm Matte Paper
Thick, smooth and glare-free. Printful, who prints it, calls it museum-quality paper.
Epson UltraChrome GS3
Pigment ink Printful lists as GREENGUARD Gold certified. Deep blacks, which a night sky needs.
Rolled In A Kraft Box
No plastic caps. Unroll it face up, lay a clean sheet of paper on it with a few books on top, and give it a night. Damaged on arrival, we send another.
