Overview

• Researchers from MIT and international institutions observed accelerating X-ray flashes from the black hole 1ES 1927+654, located 236 million light-years away in the Draco constellation.
• The flashes increased in frequency from every 18 minutes in 2022 to every seven minutes by 2024, a phenomenon never seen before in such rapid progression.
• Scientists suggest a white dwarf star is orbiting dangerously close to the black hole, shedding mass and stabilizing its inward motion near the event horizon.
• The black hole's activity has been monitored since 2018, including the disappearance and reappearance of its X-ray-emitting plasma corona and the launch of ionized gas jets in 2024.
• Future gravitational wave detectors like ESA's LISA, expected to launch in the 2030s, may confirm the presence of the white dwarf and provide further insights into this rare system.