Washington: Astronomers have observed one of the most powerful and luminous cosmic events ever recorded a colossal flare triggered by a supermassive black hole devouring a massive star in a galaxy billions of light-years away. The event, which has shattered previous energy records, offers new insight into the violent processes that occur when black holes consume stellar material.
The phenomenon, described by researchers as a tidal disruption event, occurred when a star estimated to be 30 to 200 times the mass of the Sun strayed too close to a black hole roughly 300 million times more massive than the Sun. The immense gravitational pull tore the star apart in a process known as “spaghettification,” stretching and compressing it before the remnants spiraled into the black hole. As the stellar debris was consumed, it released an extraordinary burst of energy approximately ten trillion times brighter than the Sun marking the most energetic flare ever observed.
The discovery was made through a coordinated effort using ground-based telescopes in California, Arizona, and Hawaii. Researchers tracked the flare’s progression and found that it brightened by nearly 40 times its initial intensity before reaching its peak in mid-2018. Even now, years later, the glow continues to fade slowly and is expected to last over a decade, allowing scientists to study its evolution in remarkable detail.
Dr. Matthew Graham of the California Institute of Technology, the study’s lead author, explained that the doomed star might have been dislodged from a stable orbit by another celestial object before plunging toward the black hole. “The collision likely sent the star on a fatal trajectory,” he noted. Co-author Dr. K.E. Saavik Ford of the City University of New York added that the process generated immense radiation as the infalling material heated to extreme temperatures, creating a beacon visible across billions of light-years.
This flare surpasses all previous observations in both brightness and scale scientists estimate it to be nearly 30 times more luminous than any recorded black hole flare to date. Because the event occurred about 11 billion light-years away, astronomers are observing a glimpse of the universe’s distant past, when galaxies and stars were still forming and evolving.
Researchers believe this extraordinary event will deepen understanding of black hole dynamics, particularly how they grow and interact with their surroundings. The findings also underscore the delicate balance of cosmic forces that govern life and death among the stars.
“This flare reminds us how dynamic and violent the universe can be,” Dr. Graham said. “Even in its destruction, the cosmos gives us a rare opportunity to study the deepest mysteries of creation.”