Stephen Hawking has put forward a new theory that changes the way scientists view black holes, saying he was wrong about them in the past.
For years, the physicist argued that the extreme gravitational fields of black holes somehow overturned the quantum laws. Now, he has dropped this idea.
Professor Hawking's new black holes never completely destroy everything that falls in. Instead, they continue to emit radiation for extended periods, and eventually open up to reveal the information within them.
"I have been thinking about this problem for 30 years, but I now have an answer to it," he explained.
"The black hole only appears to form but later opens up and releases information about what fell in, so we can be sure of the past and we can predict the future." (Link to BBC News Online story)