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These images of the Andromeda Galaxy use data from Spitzer. Multiple wavelengths are shown in the top image, revealing stars, dust, and regions of star formation. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

NASA's Spitzer reveals the eating habits of Andromeda's supermassive black hole

In images from the decommissioned Spitzer Space Telescope, streams of dust thousands of light-years long flow toward the supermassive black hole at the center of the Andromeda Galaxy. It turns out that these currents can explain how black holes shut down