A Michigan State University researcher saw X-rays coming from a black hole using the NASA Chandra X-Ray Observatory telescope.

“Every large galaxy has a supermassive black hole, but the exact nature of the relationship between the two is still mysterious,” said Stephen DiKerby, a physics and astronomy research associate in College of Natural Science. “After analyzing data [from the Chandra telescope], I had a chill, because I realized I was looking at the X-rays from a supermassive black hole flicker on and off.” 

Black holes have a mystique, an aura. They are the unseen monsters in the universe, but scientists around the world do not shy away from these behemoths. They embrace them as laboratories for physics and astronomy research.

Supermassive black holes are objects with millions or billions of times the Sun’s mass crammed into such a small space that even light cannot escape. Material falling into the intense gravity of the black hole can heat up to extreme temperatures.