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  • RESEARCH HIGHLIGHT

Dainty eater: black hole consumes a star bit by bit

Repeating bursts of X-rays lead scientists to a black hole that eats in spurts.
Illustration of a glowing stream of material from a star as it is being devoured by a supermassive black hole

A star being devoured by a supermassive black hole (artist’s impression) emits a glowing stream of material. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

Observations of a supermassive black hole that regularly snacks on the same star could help scientists to better understand how these invisible monsters reveal themselves1.

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Nature 613, 614 (2023)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-023-00074-5

References

  1. Liu, Z. et al. Astron. Astrophys. 669, A75 (2023).

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