Compact Object Mergers in Bounded-Curvature Spacetime

Compact Object Mergers in Bounded-Curvature Spacetime Dynamical Interaction of Near-Saturated Regions Compact-object mergers probe the most extreme dynamical regimes of spacetime curvature accessible to observation. In classical General Relativity (GR), such events generically involve runaway curvature growth and the formation of spacetime singularities inside newly formed horizons. In bounded-curvature spacetime, curvature growth is regulated by an invariant saturation scale, modifying the high-curvature dynamics without altering sub-saturation behaviour. In this work we examine neutron star–neutron star, neutron star–black hole, and black hole–black hole mergers as dynamical tests of curvature saturation onset. Building on constraints established for static compact objects, we show that mergers generically enter the onset regime for saturation scales not parametrically larger than black hole interior curvature even when individual objects do not. We argue that curvature saturation acts as a rate-limiting mechanism on geometric response, regulating collapse dynamics, smoothing horizon formation, and concentrating dissipation and entropy production in horizon growth and exterior relaxation rather than in singular endpoints.