Posted on 07/18/2011 2:25:58 PM PDT by null and void
Observations led by astronomers at the University of Warwick have shown that the flash from one of the biggest and brightest bangs yet recorded by astronomers comes from a massive black hole at the center of a distant galaxy. The black hole appears to have ripped apart a star that wandered too close, creating a powerful beam of energy that crossed the 3.8 billion light years to Earth.
Their research was published June 16, 2011, in the journal Science, in a paper entitled "An Extremely Luminous Panchromatic Outburst from the Nucleus of a Distant Galaxy".
The high energy X-rays and gamma-rays persisted at an extremely bright level for weeks after the event, with bright flares arising when further chunks of the star apparently fell into the black hole, while at optical and infrared wavelengths it is as bright as a hundred billion suns. The extreme brightness of this event comes from the fact that it created a powerful beam of energy pointing a jet of light toward the Milky Way and, thus, concentrated into only a small fraction of the sky and that was detected at Earth 3.8 billion years after the star was ripped apart.
Andrew Levan of the University of Warwick, lead researcher of the international team observing this event said "Despite the power of this the cataclysmic event, we still only happen to see this event because our solar system happened to be looking right down the barrel of this jet of energy."
The new research paper clearly establishes that the source of this event (known now as Swift 1644+57) is right at the heart of the far away galaxy, 3.8 billion light years away, at a spot that would be in the constellation Draco. This conclusion comes from a combination of the most powerful telescopes on the ground, and in space, working in tandem to pinpoint this unique and unprecedented event. These include the Hubble Space Telescope, Chandra X-ray Observatory, Swift satellite, and the Gemini and Keck Telescopes in Hawaii.
University of Warwick researcher Andrew Levan added: "The best explanation that so far fits the size, intensity, time scale and level of fluctuation of the observed event, is that a massive black hole at the very centre of that galaxy has pulled in a star and ripped it apart by tidal disruption. The spinning black hole then created the two jets, one of which pointed straight to earth."
Professor Nial Tanvir, second author of the paper, based at the University of Leicester added “It is rare for stars to get very close to the black holes in the center of galaxies but, when they do, they will always come off second best.”
eventually. Of something...
Bushes Fault.
Pointed at us now doesn’t mean it was pointed at us then. We’ve made several trips around the galaxy since then.
If a Neutron star, were to set off an emmision of Neutrons at us - we’d be dead, and never know what hit us. They move at near light speed, are undetectable -
Who knows, the bullet that will destroy earth might have been fired millions of years ago.
So, should I start eating all the dark chocolate I want and max out my credit cards now, or what?
You racist. You must have meant that diverse hole, right?
Yes on the chocolate, I’d hold off on the credit cards.
Is one on it’s way? Well, depending upon how you interpret Revalations,maybe. When it is to to hit? Jesus said ‘soon’; but ‘soon’ is kinda relative. We are told that earth will be destroyed, and that it won’t be pleasant.
Yes on the chocolate, I’d hold off on the credit cards.
Is one on it’s way? Well, depending upon how you interpret Revalations,maybe. When it is to to hit? Jesus said ‘soon’; but ‘soon’ is kinda relative. We are told that earth will be destroyed, and that it won’t be pleasant.
Grab your dark chocolate and credit cards and let’s run off together!
I don't believe neutron stars emit neutrons, rather, that they are made up of neutrons. Though gamma rays would fit your point just as well - they hit us, we're toast, while looking around at each other saying "what"?
That's an Act of War...3.8 billion years ago.
Makes you wonder where the other jet of light went.. if you go through a black hole, are you still in this universe?
Now if a supergiant star in our own galaxy did this, we'd be in heap trouble. But a supernova only happens every 400 years or so (and a GBR event is even rarer). The odds of the axial jet being aimed right at us is probably a 1-to-1000 shot. It in words, don't worry about it.
The bang will still be pretty specactular. 
Astronmers think that Eta Carinae (above) could go supernova at any time. It is rather close (7500LY) -- you will probably be able to see the explosion in the daytime. The axis isn't pointing in our direction, fortunately.
Ahhh Beam me up Scotty
Aren’t Gamma rays, just directed streams of Neutrons?
Black Hole Kills Star, Blasts Beam at Earth
==
REVELATION 12:7
7 Then war broke out in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back.
8 But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven.
9 The great dragon (LASER BEAM) was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him.
The other jet went thataway. Directly away from us, off the opposite surface of the event horizon.
if you go through a black hole, are you still in this universe?
I'm not sure anyone knows the real answer to that one...
"And he said unto them, I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven."
The Hebrew word for lightning is Barrack...
YES! Excellent idea!
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