Astrophysics Colloquium: The LBT Search for Failed Supernovae

Abstract: Theory predicts that 10-30% of massive star core collapses produce a black hole without a supernova explosion. The only presently feasible way to identify such events in a human lifetime is to search for massive stars vanishing in nearby star forming galaxies, perhaps with a weak transient. I describe our search for such systems with the twin 8.4m Large Binocular Telescope and the properties of our best candidate.