RX J1242.6−1119A (often abbreviated RX J1242−11) is an elliptical galaxy located approximately 200 megaparsecs (about 650 million light-years) from Earth.
According to current interpretations of X-ray observations made by the Chandra X-ray Observatory and XMM-Newton, the center of this galaxy is a 100 million solar mass supermassive black hole which was observed to have tidally disrupted a star (in 1992 or shortly before). The discovery is widely considered to be the first strong evidence of a supermassive black hole ripping apart a star and consuming a portion of it.
Location in the sky
The location of RX J1242.6-1119A, as seen from Earth, is less than one degree to the northeast of Messier 104, the Sombrero Galaxy.
References
External links
Media related to RX J1242-11 at Wikimedia Commons
- Komossa's Object
- Chandra X-Ray Observatory Photo Album – February 18, 2004
- Auchettl, Katie; Guillochon, James; Ramirez-Ruiz, Enrico (4 April 2017). "New Physical Insights about Tidal Disruption Events from a Comprehensive Observational Inventory at X-Ray Wavelengths". The Astrophysical Journal. 838 (2): 149. arXiv:1611.02291. doi:10.3847/1538-4357/aa633b.
