Stellar tidal disruption

[Trollbane]

Great stuff for astronomy geeks around. Chandra and XMM-Newton confirmed how black holes grow by capturing a star getting devoured. More info and pics:

http://www.nasa.gov/missions/deepspace/f_blackhole-briefing.html

 

[DanishDynamite]

Fabulous stuff indeed. My understanding is that the black hole swallowed a mass equivalent to the Earth's every 10 minutes during the encounter.

I don't know about you, but astronomical events have a way of making me see my daily trials and tribulations in perspective.

 

[Soapy Sam]

Let's hope nobody lived in the neighbourhood.