NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory has found a supermassive black hole that has torn apart a star and is now using the leftover materials to impact another star or a smaller black hole. This discovery helps solve two space mysteries and provides insights into the environment around large black holes.
An illustration shows that the star’s destruction created a disk of material (in red, orange, and yellow), which grew over time. Eventually, this disk collided with another object, either a star or a small black hole, that orbits the black hole. Each collision produces X-rays that Chandra can detect.
