ALT This illustration shows a black field speckled with white, yellow and red galaxies. A black hole near the bottom left corner of the image plows through space, leaving a diagonal trail of newborn stars stretching back to the black hole’s parent galaxy in the upper right corner. The black hole is represented by a black half-sphere. It is encircled by an elongated disk of material compressed on the lower left side and trailing off on the upper right side. The material closest to the black hole appears pink, white and streaky. Beyond this, the leading edge of the disk, near the bottom, left corner, is milky violet. The disk trails off behind the black hole, becoming black. Beyond the disk, a diagonal “contrail” of blue and pink stars extends toward the blue-and-pink parent galaxy. The bridge of stars trails off, becoming narrower as it approaches the galaxy.
