A distant black hole reawakens, and astronomers watch it happen

This artist’s impression shows two stages in the formation of a disc of gas and dust around the massive black hole at the centre of the galaxy SDSS1335+0728. The core of this galaxy lit up in 2019 and keeps brightening today — the first time we observe a massive black hole become active in real time. Credit: ESO/M. Kornmesser.

At the center of an average joe galaxy 300 million light-years away, something has just happened that has astronomers at the edge of their seats. Suddenly, a supermassive black hole inhabiting the center of a distant galaxy has come to life. The galaxy, SDSS1335+0728, is otherwise unremarkable, and even the supermassive black hole at the … Continue reading A distant black hole reawakens, and astronomers watch it happen

Astronomy Magazine