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A Boson star is a theoretical type of exotic star that on observation from a distance would present itself like a blackhole. It would have an accretion disk from the heated up drawn in matter, and as its body is made of bosons, it would be transparent. I am unsure if I should have these in my story as I am trying to stick to confirmed observations like blackholes, but the idea of such a type of star is intriguing.

My question is: If the Boson star is transparent, unlike a blackhole which blocks all light behind it, how would the light behind the star look through the boson star? If there were large dense clusters behind the star, would the lightshow up in the boson stars hole as they would normally look? Would they be distorted or fuzzy? As I am creating a graphic novel, the visual details are very important for me.

Edit: A boson star theoretically has to fall within the Chandrasekhar limit so its radius can be no more than a white dwarfs but if one was to observe it at a closer range and there was no accretion disk and matter obscuring the view how would light behind the star be affected?

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  • $\begingroup$ I put this question on Worldbuilding due to the theoretical aspect but if this is better suited to Astronomy stack let me know and I will post it on there. $\endgroup$
    – user80849
    Nov 29, 2020 at 17:41
  • $\begingroup$ That Wiki article seems incomplete and contradictory and I don't have the time to research a more complete article. Does a Boson star have enough gravity to suck in photons, or not? While true that a black hole is believed to be opaque due to ultra compressed matter - it isn't transparent (you can't see through it) because of that. It's because light can't get away from it. Does the Boson star have that much gravity, or not? The wiki article says it has G to bend light around it, that suggests light can't get through it. I.E., the fact it's transparent is irrelevant. Yes? No? $\endgroup$
    – JBH
    Nov 29, 2020 at 19:31
  • $\begingroup$ @JBH I think the angle of the observer will be important, the same with blackholes. It will suck in photons which will fall in at different stages, some will rotate around it, some will be bent around it and carry on forwards. As it is transparent those that are not bent around it may or should be seen on the other side of it? $\endgroup$
    – user80849
    Nov 29, 2020 at 20:09
  • $\begingroup$ Methinks we're straining at a gnat. As I mentioned, I'm not convinced the obviously cool transparency of a Boson star would mean anything when it comes to seeing what's behind it. I don't think any light could flow through the star. As mentioned, I'm not in a position to do the research, but I'm pretty sure anything with an accretion disk will not allow light to pass through the center, and that's the necessary focus of this question, right? $\endgroup$
    – JBH
    Nov 30, 2020 at 0:53
  • $\begingroup$ @JBH Well one man cant answer every question and read every paper on their own, I dont think any one person can be an expert on every subject. $\endgroup$
    – user80849
    Nov 30, 2020 at 1:34

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If you can settle with what Wikipedia lists on boson stars, this is what you get:

It is theorized that unlike normal stars (which emit radiation due to gravitational pressure and nuclear fusion), boson stars would be transparent and invisible. The immense gravity of a compact boson star would bend light around the object, creating an empty region resembling the shadow of a black hole's event horizon. Like a black hole, a boson star would absorb ordinary matter from its surroundings, but the transparency means this matter (which likely would heat up and emit radiation) would be visible at its center. Simulations further suggest that rotating boson stars would be doughnut-shaped as centrifugal forces would give the bosonic matter that form.

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  • $\begingroup$ I have read a few paper on Boson stars and tbh wiki is pretty general with its information. I can see how that would make sense for blackholes but a transparent object would surely not bend all light around it? $\endgroup$
    – user80849
    Nov 29, 2020 at 18:16
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    $\begingroup$ @NathanO'Haire, light bending is a consequence of space-time deformation, not of optical properties. $\endgroup$
    – L.Dutch ♦
    Nov 29, 2020 at 18:24
  • $\begingroup$ I understand that but our current knowledge is based on solid bodies of matter which block the light behind them, so it is an assumption that all of the light is affected by gravity and bent around the body. $\endgroup$
    – user80849
    Nov 29, 2020 at 18:27
  • $\begingroup$ @NathanO'Haire, afaik GR equations do not contain any terms accounting for optical properties. $\endgroup$
    – L.Dutch ♦
    Nov 29, 2020 at 18:40
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    $\begingroup$ @NathanO'Haire Commenting your "a transparent object would surely not bend all light around it". Any object with a mass will bend light, it's just a question of to what degree. Our sun will bend light enough that they could measure it in 1919. Check out en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gravitational_lens for some theory and inspiring pictures! $\endgroup$
    – EdvinW
    Nov 30, 2020 at 11:07

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