Black Hole's Energetic Awakening Captured by Astronomers

Astronomers have observed one of the most dramatic "switches on" of a black hole ever seen. The black hole, known as J221951, appeared suddenly and shone brightly, indicating rapid feeding on surrounding material. The source is located around 10 billion light years away and is one of the most luminous transients ever detected. Two possible mechanisms for this extreme feeding are a tidal disruption event or the activation of an active galactic nucleus. Continued monitoring will help determine the nature of this event.