The Case of the Missing Star
What's happened to giant star N6946-BH1?
It was there just a few years ago --
Hubble imaged it.
Now there's only a faint glow.
What's
curiouser, no bright
supernova
occurred -- although the star did brighten significantly for a few months.
The leading theory
is that, at about 25 times the mass of our Sun,
N6946-BH1's great gravity held much of
the star
together during its final tumultuous death throes, after which most of the
star sank into a
black hole of its own making.
If so,
then some of
what remained
outside of the black hole likely then formed an
accretion disk that emits comparatively faint
infrared light
as it swirls around, before falling in.
If this mode of star death is confirmed with other stars,
it gives direct evidence that a
very massive star
can end its life with a
whimper rather than a bang.