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R.D. Blandford (Caltech)
In recent years, observers have verified that black holes are common in binary X-ray sources in our galaxy (with masses about five to ten times that of the sun) and in the nuclei of galaxies, including our own, with masses of millions to billions of solar masses. There may also be many black holes of intermediate mass. Astronomers are now starting to explore the properties of these black holes and perhaps see peculiar features of Einstein's general theory of relativity in action. In particular, they may be detecting the spins of some black holes. The evidence for the existence of black holes will be reviewed and some of their astronomically interesting properties will be explained. In addition, some speculations concerning their role in stellar and galactic evolution will be briefly entertained.