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From the August 2009 issue

Ask Astro web extra: What happens to matter that falls into a black hole?

Associate Editor Daniel Pendick talks about black holes.
By Astronomy Staff | Published: August 21, 2009 | Last updated on May 18, 2023

Up Next

  • A James Webb Space Telescope image of a dense galaxy cluster filled with hundreds of galaxies of varying shapes, sizes, and colors against a black background. Three small white squares labeled A, B, and C mark gravitationally lensed images of a background quasar near the cluster center. At right, three zoomed-in inset panels labeled QSO1A, QSO1B, and QSO1C show each lensed quasar image as a small red point source.
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  • Hubble Space Telescope image of an irregular dwarf galaxy showing bright blue star clusters, pink star-forming regions, and a dusty golden core against a black starfield.
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    Black hole caught snacking on star far from host galaxy’s center

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    Supermassive black hole seen feeding via a pair of spiral arms

  • Exotic Objects, Robotic Spaceflight

    What a mission to a black hole could look like

  • Exotic Objects, Stars

    ‘Strange binary’: Astronomers discover a pulsar and a helium star orbiting each other

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