Galaxy RXJ1242-11
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RX J1242-11 | |
Observation data (J2000 epoch) | |
---|---|
Constellation | Virgo |
Right ascension | 12h 42m 36.9s |
Declination | -11° 19´ 35´´ |
Distance | 650 Mly (200 Mpc)[citation needed] |
Notable features | Pair of Galaxies = [KG99] A + [KG99] B. |
Other designations | |
RX J1242.6-1119 | |
See also: Galaxy, List of galaxies |
RXJ1242-11 is a galaxy located approximately 200 megaparsecs (about 650 million light-years) from Earth. According to current interpretations of X-ray observations made by the Chandra X-ray Observatory and XMM-Newton, the centre of this galaxy is a 100 million solar mass supermassive black hole which was observed to have swallowed part of a star which had been pushed by a second star into the black hole. The remaining star was pushed back into the local galaxy.
The discovery is widely considered to be the first strong evidence of a supermassive black hole ripping apart a star and consuming a portion of it.
[edit] External links
- NASA Official Release - Giant Black Hole Rips Apart Unlucky Star In Cosmic Reality Show
- Chandra X-Ray Observatory Photo Album - February 18, 2004
- [41QuarkBuchiNeri.pdf]