Detecting the 'heartbeat' of smallest black hole candidate
Friday, December 16, 2011 - 14:30
in Astronomy & Space
Astronomers have identified a candidate for the smallest-known black hole using data from NASA's Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer (RXTE). The evidence comes from a specific type of X-ray pattern, nicknamed a "heartbeat" because of its resemblance to an electrocardiogram. The pattern until now has been recorded in only one other black hole system.