Although research is ongoing, astronomers say that the unusual explosion likely arose when a star wandered too close to its galaxy’s central black hole. Intense tidal forces probably tore the star apart, and the infalling gas continues to stream toward the black hole.
According to this model, the spinning black hole formed an outflowing jet, which is blasting powerful X-rays and gamma rays in our direction, researchers said.
The astronomers believe that the X-rays we are seeing “may be coming from matter moving near the speed of light in a particle jet that forms as the star’s gas falls toward the black hole.” Apparently, we are watching this astronomical event head on.
For those of you unfamiliar with intergalactic distance, 3.8 billion light-years is 22,338,776,418,097,710,000,000 miles. More or less.