The Invisible Black Hole Revealed by Two Space Telescopes

Bedtime Astronomy

Astronomers have discovered oMEGACat BH-2, the first confirmed stellar-mass black hole inside the ancient globular cluster Omega Centauri.

Using decades of Hubble data alongside James Webb observations, they tracked a star orbiting an invisible 4.5-solar-mass companion, revealing a "quiet" black hole that emits no detectable radiation. The discovery shows how dense star clusters can create and hide black holes, opening a powerful new way to find these invisible cosmic objects.

Thank you for listening to Bedtime Astronomy — your guide to the cosmos. New episodes on space exploration, NASA missions & the latest astronomy breakthroughs.
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Astronomers have discovered oMEGACat BH-2, the first confirmed stellar-mass black hole inside the ancient globular cluster Omega Centauri.

Using decades of Hubble data alongside James Webb observations, they tracked a star orbiting an invisible 4.5-solar-mass companion, revealing a "quiet" black hole that emits no detectable radiation. The discovery shows how dense star clusters can create and hide black holes, opening a powerful new way to find these invisible cosmic objects.

Thank you for listening to Bedtime Astronomy — your guide to the cosmos. New episodes on space exploration, NASA missions & the latest astronomy breakthroughs.
2026-08-12 54 min Transcript
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