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Chandra links AT 2016blu outbursts to a hidden companion
NASA said Chandra X-ray data point to a black hole or neutron star pulling material from AT 2016blu in NGC 4559 every 113 days.
NASA said astronomers using the Chandra X-ray Observatory have identified what they think is triggering repeated outbursts from AT 2016blu, a massive star in the spiral galaxy NGC 45591.
The galaxy is about 30 million light-years from Earth, NASA said, and astronomers estimate the star's mass is at least 33 times the Sun's1. NASA released a composite image on Nov. 9, 2026, combining Chandra X-ray data with optical imaging from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey1.
NASA said astronomers have watched the star brighten and dim in optical light on a regular basis for more than 15 years1. Chandra's X-ray observations suggest a previously hidden companion — either a stellar-mass black hole or a neutron star — is pulling material from AT 2016blu every 113 days as the two objects orbit each other1.
That captured material gets hot enough to shine brightly in X-rays, NASA said1. Other nearby pink and blue specks in the image are unresolved stars or star clusters too distant to be related to the transfer of material between AT 2016blu and its companion, according to NASA1.
The image-article credits X-ray work to a University of Virginia team led by M. Aghakhanloo and notes a longer NASA Chandra write-up of the same finding1. Independent confirmation of the companion's nature — black hole versus neutron star — is not established in the NASA post1.
Sources
NASAOfficial source