A group of astronomers have searched through extensive amounts of data and identified a distinct signal indicating a faraway supermassive black hole violently ripping apart and feasting on a colossal star. This passing occasion, during which a celestial object modifies its position or radiance, has been referred to by scientists as 'Scary Barbie' as per News Nine.
This supermassive black hole was more luminous, more potent, and more extensive than any other shining bursts from stars spotted so far. The data inferred an unusual observation that was too bright to be typical and was officially labeled as ZTF20abrbeie.
'Scary Barbie' Black Hole Found Burning for Two Years, Dubbed as One of the Most Powerful Cosmic Explosions Ever Witnessed
Scary Barbie's Bright Flash of Light Lasted for Two Years
The Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF) detected the "Scary Barbie" event due to its random alphanumeric name and outstanding peculiarity. The ZTF analyzes gathered data and, by comparing current observation positions and luminosities with previous results, can identify transient events such as asteroids or supernovae.
An article, titled "Scary Barbie: An Extremely Energetic, Long-Duration Tidal Disruption Event Candidate Without a Detected Host Galaxy at z = 0.995" describing the extraordinary discovery, has been approved for publication in The Astrophysical Journal Letters.
The object detected was an extremely bright flash of light that has continued to burn for more than two years, discovered within a massive collection of data collected by telescopes and classified as one of the most powerful cosmic explosions ever recorded.
Scary Barbie was triggered when a supermassive black hole snared a passing giant star that had strayed too close. The star was stretched into a spaghetti-like shape and produced a colossal amount of energy as it was sucked into the black hole.
Danny Milisavljevic, a physicist and astronomer at Purdue University, said in a statement that he was awestruck. He stated that even if they were to magnify a supernova one thousand times, it still would not match the brightness of the Scary Barbie event, making it the most energetic phenomenon he has ever come across.
READ ALSO: Two Supermassive Black Holes Predicted to Collide Within Three Years: Here's What to Expect
Birth of Scary Barbie
As mentioned above, Scary Barbie is an astronomical event that was born from the destruction of a star by a supermassive black hole. According to Live Science, Black holes consume stars that pass by them by using their immense gravitational pull to exert tidal forces on the star. As the star gets closer to the black hole, the gravity affecting the side closer to the black hole is much stronger, causing the star to stretch out and resemble a long noodle.
This noodle then spins around the black hole and releases a jet of energy and matter that produces a bright beam of light that can be detected by telescopes.
Scary Barbie is an extremely rare cosmic outburst that is brighter than any other transient event the astronomers have compared it to. It has been burning for over two years and shows no signs of ceasing.
Further observations of Scary Barbie may be possible using the Hubble Space Telescope and the James Webb Space Telescope, which could allow for high-resolution images of the event. The discovery of Scary Barbie is a reminder that there is still much to be uncovered about the universe and that there are many wonders that remain to be seen.
RELATED ARTICLE: Tidal Disruption Event Results in Spaghettification When a Star Wanders Too Close to a Black Hole, Showing Violent Events in Galaxy
Check out more news and information on Black Holes in Science Times.
