Scientists Record Signal of Distant Black Hole Consuming Star

ananyo writes "Astronomers think they have seen the flare of a dying star being eviscerated by a black hole. The signal, spotted by three different satellites, could shed light on the relationship between the smaller black holes seen in our own galaxy and the supermassive ones in distant reaches of the Universe. The stellar victim was first seen in 2011 by Swift, a NASA satellite designed to spot bursts of high-energy photons known as gamma-rays. For more than a month, Swift watched a signal from a distant galaxy, which eventually faded from view. Subsequent analysis showed that the gamma-rays probably came from a star being ripped to pieces by a previously unknown black hole (abstract)."

Hipster hole

[girlintraining]

It wasn't a black hole, it was a hipster hole... You probably didn't know about it until now.

Better ban this!

[RenderSeven]

"Mayor Michael Bloomberg, when asked to comment, suggested that consuming whole stars is a major cause of black hole obesity and that he is introducing legislation to limit black hole consumption to dwarf stars and interstellar gasses. Local law enforcement expressed skepticism that the ban could enforced, since the black holes are "a bajillion light years out of our jurisdiction" but Bloomberg was adamant that "if we can save even one black hole from a life of obesity and health issues then we have an obligation to act no matter what the cost".