Scientists have discovered a peculiar supernova that may have arisen when a star attempted to engulf a black hole. This instance, set to be published in The Astrophysical Journal, indicates that large stars could explode not just because of aging but also due to significant spatial collisions. The supernova, designated SN 2023zkd, was detected using an AI algorithm associated with a Slack bot, which monitors for rare explosions in real-time. This instrument enabled astronomers to organize telescope observations prior to the explosion dimming. V. Ashley Villar, an astronomy professor at Harvard, remarked that AI has been utilized for years to filter through data, particularly with robotic telescopes recognizing numerous flickering lights each night. Generative AI, which adapts through data, is becoming increasingly beneficial. Villar indicated that their research team merges astrophysical expertise with AI systems to categorize stellar explosions and pinpoint new systems like 2023zkd.

The explosion, located roughly 730 million light-years away from Earth, was initially detected in July 2023 by the Zwicky Transient Facility. This occurrence was notable because it exhibited two flashes of light, separated by eight months, and the source had been brightening prior to detonating. Black holes, once a theoretical notion, are now well-recognized in the field of astronomy. Stellar black holes arise when a massive star concludes its life in a supernova, collapsing into a compact object from which no light can escape. Black holes possess an “event horizon,” a threshold beyond which anything crossing it is ensnared by gravity.

Researchers believe that a star’s effort to devour a black hole instigated this peculiar supernova, according to a study by the Harvard & Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics and MIT. The most straightforward scenario is that a helium-rich star orbiting closely with a black hole initiated the supernova when they began to merge. The AI tool identified the event months before its unusual activity manifested. Alexander Gagliano, one of the authors of the paper, clarified that the gravitational forces of the star and black hole led to the black hole being “consumed” by the star’s hot gas, resulting in the star’s destruction.

The LAISS AI tool functions by examining supernova features and characteristics of host galaxies to detect statistically abnormal events. Approximately half of the flagged supernovas are genuinely uncommon, whereas others are active supermassive black holes, which are not the researchers’ area of interest. The forthcoming Vera C. Rubin Observatory will necessitate more innovative methods for data categorization. Villar noted a shift toward contemporary AI techniques to extract features from supernova galaxy imagery. The LAISS tool can also cluster similar supernovas utilizing ANNOY, a Spotify algorithm that proposes astronomical occurrences instead of music tracks. When a massive star undergoes a supernova due to its interaction with a black hole, a larger black hole remains, according to Gagliano.