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a) Can a chunk of ordinary matter (say, a brick or an
electron) initially located somewhere outside the event horizon (and
totally free to move under gravitational influence from an initial
velocity of zero) actually pass through to the horizon's interior, or
b) does such matter approach the horizon in some asymptotic manner?
I ask this because if the chunk must gain an infinite amount of
gravitational potential energy to pass outward through the horizon,
Does the idea of "passing through" the event horizon even make sense?
Or is the process, if it
occurs, more akin to quantum mechanical "tunneling"?
I am assuming that the matter chunk in question is sufficiently small
(or of sufficiently rugged construction) that destruction due to tidal
forces while still outside the event horizon is not of concern, unless
of course it is pertinent to the explanation.