IANAP, but the way I heard it explained is that a black hole bends space-time so much that a straight line curves back into itself as a circle. Thus light fails to escape not because it lacks enough speed, but because there is no straight line it can follow that exits the black hole.
HonoraryCanadian t1_j6tjdiu wrote
Reply to comment by pinguin_skipper in Ask Anything Wednesday - Physics, Astronomy, Earth and Planetary Science by AutoModerator
IANAP, but the way I heard it explained is that a black hole bends space-time so much that a straight line curves back into itself as a circle. Thus light fails to escape not because it lacks enough speed, but because there is no straight line it can follow that exits the black hole.