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    The Most Massive Object in the Universe—How Was It Created?

    by Matthew Francis Feb 24, 2014 4 minutes
    A computer simulation of the merger of two black holesNASA / CXC / A. Hobart

    The galaxy known prosaically as M87 doesn’t look like much. Unlike beautiful spiral galaxies (including the Milky Way), M87 appears as an orangish blob of stars through telescopes. Its only noticeable feature is the long streamer of gas emanating from the galactic center.

    The source of that jet is far from prosaic, however: It’s a black hole 6.6 times the mass of the Sun. No other known object is as massive—this black hole by itself outweighs entire star clusters and small galaxies. Even compared to other huge

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