A Black Hole is Savoring its Meal, Feeding on the Same Star Over and Over Again

Something extraordinary happens about every 10,000 to 100,000 years in galaxies like the Milky Way. An unwary star approaches the supermassive black hole (SMBH) at the galaxy’s center and is torn apart by the SMBH’s overpowering gravity. Astronomers call the phenomenon a tidal disruption event (TDE.) Usually, a TDE spells doom for the star as …