Liverpool John Moores University

A general illustration of a star being torn apart by the tidal forces of a black hole. Some of the material forms a hot accretion disk, from which a high-speed wind is emitted. The researchers speculate that a similar mechanism, within a binary system, may explain the AT2024wpp event. Image: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/CI Lab.

A black hole probably ripped apart a massive star, creating an unprecedented cosmic flash

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The AT2024wpp event, known as the “whip,” reached a brightness of hundreds of billions of suns and evolved at an extraordinary speed. Researchers estimate that a black hole in a binary system ripped apart the companion star, creating a hot accretion disk and rapidly launching a wind.
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