![]() “Scary Barbie” is the affectionate nickname astronomers are calling one of the most energetic and luminous transients ever observed: a supermassive black hole tearing apart a massive star, as in this illustration. ![]() If you take a typical supernova and multiply it a thousand times, we’re still not at how bright this is – and supernovas are among the most luminous objects in the sky.” ![]() This particular transient is believed to be a black hole in the process of consuming a star.ĭanny Milisavljevic, an assistant professor of physics and astronomy at Purdue University, said, “It’s absurd. Scary Barbie is a transient object, meaning it appears, disappears, or changes dramatically over short periods. The Discovery of Scary BarbieĪstronomers found an extremely bright and long-lasting cosmic event named ZTF20abrbeie, or “Scary Barbie.” This event was hiding within a massive amount of telescope data, undetected for years. Some well-known black holes include Sagittarius A* at the center of our Milky Way galaxy, Cygnus X-1, and V404 Cygni. These mysterious objects form when a massive star collapses in on itself after exhausting its nuclear fuel. What is a Black Hole?Ī black hole is a region in space with an extremely high gravitational pull, so strong that not even light can escape it. Before we delve into the details, let’s learn about black holes and some of the most famous ones known to astronomers. ![]() This captivating discovery, dubbed “Scary Barbie,” was hiding in plain sight in telescope data for years. Astronomers have discovered an incredibly bright and long-lasting cosmic event, believed to be a supermassive black hole tearing apart a star. ![]()
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