P67: Black Star Population in the Milky Way — IMF-Based Estimate and LMXB Candidate Survey

We estimate the population of CCEGA black stars in the Milky Way using the Salpeter IMF and stellar evolution models. Stars with ZAMS mass 14.7–22.3 M☉ produce remnants in the black star regime 4.56–14.75 M☉. With a Galactic supernova rate of 0.02 yr⁻¹ and ~15% producing black stars, we estimate N_BS ~ 1.5×10⁷ black stars in the Milky Way, ~15% of the estimated stellar black hole population. Among known LMXBs, ~10 objects are predicted to be black star candidates. 4U 1957+11 remains the strongest. A four-criterion LMXB survey (no quiescence, absent radio jet, absent Type I bursts, Λ > 0) provides a population-level falsification test. Uncertainty factor ~3.