Scientists spot black hole devouring star at close proximity to Earth

In a rare visual, astronomers have noticed a supermassive black hole devouring a star at very close proximity to Earth.

The gory death of the star took place after a black hole, which has a mass equal to nearly one million suns, devoured it.

The event took place in the active star-birthing galaxy NGC 3799 which is constellation of Leo and is 160 million light-years away from Earth.

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The scientists, who were from theHawaiiInstitute for Astronomy, spotted the stellar murder which is called a tidal disruption event (TDE).

It was spotted when the barred spiral galaxy's sudden brightening and rapid fading occurred within it. The All-Sky Automated Survey for SuperNovae (ASAS-SN) system saw the death of the star on February 22, 2023.

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In a statement, research co-leader Willem Hoogendam said, "While black holes destroying stars have been seen before, this is the first one we have seen this close using visible light."

"This could give us a much better understanding of howsupermassive black holes grow and collect material around them," he added.

Discovery of TDE close to Earth a rare phenomenon

The tidal disruption events (TDEx) take place when stars come very close to supermassive black holes which are present in the hearts of all large galaxies and are as heavy as millions or billions of suns.

The immense gravitational forces of these black holes create huge tidal forces which stretch the stars horizontally as well as vertically.

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The stars then break down into stellar material which are wrapped around by supermassive black holes. This process is called "spaghettification".

The supermassive black hole eventually feeds every destroyed star. The destruction of stars and their devouring generate extremely bright flares which are visible from Earth, with the help of instruments.

Although these events are very common, discovering TDEs in close proximity to the Earth is rare. The scientists will now investigate TDE in NGC 3799, which is designated ASASSN-23bd.

"This discovery suggests that black holes ripping stars apart nearby could be more common than previously thought — we just haven’t witnessed it happening frequently," Hoogendam said.

(With inputs from agencies)