Do Black Hole Candidates Have Magnetic Moments Instead of Event Horizons?

Abstract

In previous work we found that many of the spectral properties of low mass x-ray binaries (LMXB), including galactic black hole candiates (GBHC) were consistent with the existence of intrinsically magnetized central objects. We review and extend these findings and show that the existence of intrisically magnetic BHC is consistent with a new class of solutions of the Einstein field equations of General Relativity. These solutions are based on a strict adherence to the Strong Principle of Equivalence (SPOE) requirement that the world lines of physical matter must remain timelike in all regions of spacetime. The new solutions emerge when the structure and radiation transfer properties of the energy momentum tensor on the right hand side of the Einstein field equations are appropriately chosen to dynamically enforce the SPOE requirement of timelike world line completeness. In this context, we find that the Einstein field equations allow the existence of highly red shifted, Magnetospheric, Eternally Collapsing Objects (MECO). MECO can possess intrinsic magnetic moments since they do not have trapped surfaces that lead to event horizons and curvature singularities. Since MECO lifetimes are orders of magnitude greater than a Hubble time, they provide an elegant and unified framework for understanding a broad range of observations of GBHC and active galactic nuclei. We examine their properties and discuss characteristics that might lead to their confirmation.