RX J1242−11

RX J1242.6−1119A (often abbreviated RX J1242−11) is an elliptical galaxy located approximately 200 megaparsecs (about 650 million light-years) from Earth. The name is derived from RX J1242.6-1119, the term for an X-ray source identified by ROSAT as a galaxy pair [KG99] A & B.

RX J1242−11
A Chandra X-ray Observatory image of RX J1242-11.
Observation data (J2000 epoch)
Constellation	Virgo
Right ascension	12h 42m 36.9s
Declination	−11° 19′ 35″
Distance	650 Mly (200 Mpc)[1]
Apparent magnitude (V)	c. +14 m
Characteristics
Type	elliptical
Notable features	Pair of Galaxies = [KG99] A + [KG99] B.
Other designations
RX J1242.6-1119A
References: 2MASS J12423854-1119207

Supermassive black hole

X-ray observatories provide direct evidence for the catastrophic destruction of a star that wandered too close to a supermassive black hole.

According to current interpretations of X-ray observations made by the Chandra X-ray Observatory and XMM-Newton, the center of this galaxy is a 100 million solar mass supermassive black hole which was observed to have tidally disrupted a star (in 1992 or shortly before).^[1] The discovery is widely considered to be the first strong evidence of a supermassive black hole ripping apart a star and consuming a portion of it.^[2]

Location in the sky

The location of RX J1242.6-1119A, as seen from Earth, is less than one degree to the northeast of Messier 104, the Sombrero Galaxy.