A distant black hole has stunned scientists with a puzzling phenomenon that’s unlike anything seen before. Known as “1ES 1927+654,” this supermassive black hole, with a mass a million times that of the Sun, caused a stir when its scorching corona mysteriously vanished and later returned. Now, astronomers are witnessing another bizarre event—flashes of X-rays that are rapidly speeding up. These bursts initially occurred every 18 minutes but have accelerated to just seven-minute intervals, leaving experts scrambling for answers.
Could a White Dwarf Be the Culprit?
During a presentation at the 245th meeting of the American Astronomical Society, researchers unveiled a possible explanation for this strange behavior. Their findings, soon to be published in Nature, point to a white dwarf—a stellar remnant left behind after a Sun-like star exhausts its fuel. This particular white dwarf appears to be orbiting dangerously close to the black hole, triggering the unusual bursts of X-ray energy.
“This would be the closest thing we know of around any black hole,” explained Megan Masterson, a physicist at MIT and co-lead of the research team. “It suggests that objects like white dwarfs may be able to survive near the event horizon for longer than we thought possible.”
Black holes are regions of extreme gravity, where anything that crosses the event horizon—the point beyond which nothing can escape—disappears forever. If Earth were hypothetically compressed into a black hole, it would measure less than an inch across. Supermassive black holes, however, are vastly larger, and their gravitational pull is strong enough to trap even light.
How a Dying Star Creates X-Ray Flares
Using data collected by the European Space Agency’s XMM-Newton satellite, scientists ran detailed simulations to understand the source of these energetic flares. They concluded that the white dwarf, about one-tenth the mass of our Sun, is shedding its outer layers as it spirals closer to the black hole. This interaction likely causes the X-ray bursts, which increase in frequency as the star speeds up in its orbit.
Surprisingly, the white dwarf isn’t expected to fall into the black hole. Erin Kara, an associate professor of physics at MIT and co-author of the study, explained, “Because white dwarfs are incredibly dense, they’re tough to break apart completely. If our model is right, the star may reach a turning point and start moving away from the black hole.”
As the white dwarf sheds material, the resulting kickback effect propels it slightly outward, keeping it from being pulled in entirely.
Located around 270 million light-years from Earth, this black hole continues to surprise astronomers. While this latest observation sheds light on how black holes interact with nearby objects, more data is needed to fully understand the long-term fate of the white dwarf. Could future findings reveal even stranger phenomena at play? Scientists are eager to keep watching for answers.
Join the Conversation!
Have something to share or discuss? Connect with us on Facebook and join like-minded explorers in our Telegram group. For the latest discoveries and insights, make sure to follow us on Google News.
