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Evidence suggests that a white dwarf star has been torn apart by an intermediate-mass black hole. If confirmed, this result would be the first time such a class of black hole was found in this setting. This system is found in the elliptical galaxy NGC 1399, which is in the Fornax cluster. Chandra observations show that this object is a so-called ultraluminous X-ray source (ULX). An unusual class of objects, ULXs emit more X-rays than any known stellar X-ray source, but less than the bright X-ray sources associated with supermassive black holes in the centers of galaxies. Data obtained in optical light with the Magellan I and II telescopes in Las Campanas, Chile, also provides intriguing information about this object, which is found in the elliptical galaxy NGC 1399 in the Fornax galaxy cluster. The spectrum reveals emission from oxygen and nitrogen but no hydrogen, a rare set of signals from within globular clusters. The physical conditions deduced from the spectra suggest that the gas is orbiting a black hole of at least 1, 000 solar masses. Release date January 4, 2010.
