Black holes, known for their immense gravitational pull, are not destroyed in the traditional sense but can theoretically dissipate over time through a process called Hawking radiation. Proposed by physicist Stephen Hawking in 1974, this phenomenon occurs because of quantum effects near the event horizon of the black hole.

According to quantum mechanics, particle-antiparticle pairs constantly form and annihilate in the vacuum of space. Near the event horizon, these pairs can be affected by the black hole’s intense gravitational field. Occasionally, one particle falls into the black hole while the other escapes, making it appear as though the black hole is emitting radiation. This escaping radiation is what we call Hawking radiation.

Over incredibly long timescales, this radiation causes the black hole to lose mass and energy. As the black hole emits more radiation, it gradually shrinks. This process accelerates as the black hole becomes smaller, leading to a rapid loss of mass and eventually resulting in the black hole evaporating completely.

However, for most black holes, this process is extremely slow. For a black hole with the mass of our sun, it would take far longer than the current age of the universe to evaporate completely. Thus, while Hawking radiation provides a theoretical mechanism for the destruction of black holes, it remains a process of immense time scales.