Why supermassive black hole continues to belch matter years after chewing up a star
A black hole at the centre of a galaxy 665 million light years away is continuing to emit a jet of matter six years after eating a star
Scientists are observing the behaviour of a supermassive black hole that is displaying exceptionally messy eating habits.
Primarily using radio telescopes in New Mexico, in the United States, and South Africa, they are watching the black hole at the centre of a galaxy far from our Milky Way, as it continues to belch a fast-moving jet of material after ripping apart and eating a star that got too close.
What makes this fatal stellar encounter unusual is the intensity and duration of the black hole’s post-meal indigestion.
Material left over from the star did not begin shooting into space until two years after it was shredded into its component gases by the black hole’s gravitational forces. But this jet has been shooting into space for six years – longer than has been observed before – and continues to intensify.
“The exponential rise in the luminosity of this source is unprecedented,” says University of Oregon astrophysicist Yvette Cendes, lead author of the study published in the Astrophysical Journal on February 5. “It’s now about 50 times brighter than when it was first discovered, and is now incredibly bright for an object in radio waves. This has been going on for years now, and no sign of stopping. That is super unusual.”
