Correct answer: (d) A collapsed star
Explanation
- A
A flight recorder in an aeroplane
(a) A flight recorder in an aeroplane. That is the cockpit “black box” (actually orange)—a homonym, not the astrophysical object.
- B
A spot on the Sun
(b) A spot on the Sun. Sunspots are magnetic cool patches, not collapsed stars.
- C
A place in Antarctica
(c) A place in Antarctica. No such geographic black hole; a joke option.
- D
A collapsed star
(d) A collapsed star. A black hole forms when a massive star collapses so far that escape velocity exceeds light speed (event horizon). (d) Official key.
Summary. Official key is (d). An astrophysical black hole is a collapsed massive star (or a merger remnant) with an event horizon. The aircraft recorder is a vocabulary trap.