XMM-Newton News Archive - Year 2025

 

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XMM-Newton sees comet 3I/ATLAS in X-ray light 12-December-2025
XMM-Newton sees comet 3I/ATLAS in X-ray light
XMM-Newton's EPIC-pn camera observed interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS for ~20 hours, revealing a bright low-energy X-ray glow created as gas from the comet collides with the solar wind—highlighting hard-to-detect gases like H₂ and N₂. The observation offers a rare X-ray look at an interstellar visitor, complementing other telescopes to probe its composition. A video about this discovery, "NEW OBSERVATION! 3I/ATLAS Emits X-Rays as It Passes Through Our Solar System" by NASA Space News, is available on YouTube.
Further details on ESA.int web portal.

Flaring black hole whips up ultra-fast winds 09-December-2025
Flaring black hole whips up ultra-fast winds
XMM-Newton and XRISM caught a supermassive black hole in NGC 3783 whipping up winds at ~60,000 km/s—about a fifth of light speed—immediately after a bright X-ray flare. The rapid, flare-triggered outflow links black hole magnetic untwisting to ultra-fast winds, echoing solar coronal mass ejections on a far larger scale.
Further details on ESA.int web portal.

Low-luminosity active galactic nucleus in NGC 3221 02-December-2025
Astronomers confirm low-luminosity active galactic nucleus in nearby galaxy NGC 3221
Astronomers from Stanford University used ESA's XMM-Newton to obtain deep X-ray observations of the nearby galaxy NGC 3221, confirming the presence of a low-luminosity active galactic nucleus. The result sheds light on how modestly accreting supermassive black holes contribute to the growth and energetic output of their host galaxies.
Further details on Phys.org web portal.

Explosive burst on nearby star 12-November-2025
First confirmed sighting of explosive burst on nearby star
Astronomers using the European Space Agency's XMM-Newton space observatory and the LOFAR telescope have definitively spotted an explosive burst of material thrown out into space by another star – a burst powerful enough to strip away the atmosphere of any unlucky planet in its path. The burst was a coronal mass ejection (CME), eruptions we often see coming from the Sun. During a CME, massive amounts of material are flung out from our star, flooding the surrounding space. The radio signal was spotted using the Low Frequency Array (LOFAR) radio telescope and the team then used ESA's XMM-Newton to determine the star's temperature, rotation, and brightness in X-ray light. The researchers determined the CME to be moving at a super-fast 2400 km per second, a speed only seen in 1 of every 2000 CMEs taking place on the Sun. The ejection was both fast and dense enough to completely strip away the atmospheres of any planets closely orbiting the star, which is a red dwarf located around 130 light-years away.
Further details on ESA.int web portal.

AO-25 Closed 15-Oct-2025

XMM-Newton Announcement of Opportunity (AO-25) Closed

The Twenty-fifth Announcement of Opportunity (AO-25) for XMM-Newton closed on 10 October 2025.

A total of 463 valid proposals were received for this cycle, which covers a one-year period with 10 Ms of observing time available. In contrast, 85.6 Ms of science time were requested, resulting in an over-subscription factor of 8.6.

This marks a significant increase in over-subscription compared to recent years. The rise is primarily due to reduced available observing time in AO-25, driven by operational constraints such as increased expected radiation levels and the ongoing evolution of the spacecraft’s orbit.

Proposal breakdown:

  • Large Programmes: 45 proposals
  • Fulfil Programmes: 13 proposals
  • Anticipated Target of Opportunity observations: 81 proposals

Joint Programme submissions totalled 114 proposals:

XMM–NuSTAR: 43
XMM–HST: 15
XMM–SWIFT: 19
XMM–VLT: 10
XMM–Chandra: 10
XMM–JWST: 19
XMM–NRAO: 12
XMM–XRISM (new): 9

Proposals were submitted by 375 different Principal Investigators from 42 countries. Including co-investigators, approximately 1,700 individual scientists participated in the response the Twenty-fifth Announcement of Opportunity.

2025-10-nature-newly-faint-ray 13-Oct-2025
Observations inspect the nature of a newly discovered very faint X-ray transient
Using various space telescopes, an international team of astronomers have observed a newly detected very faint X-ray transient designated 4XMM J174610.7–290020. Results of the observational campaign, published October 2 on the arXiv pre-print server, yield new insights into the nature of this transient.
Further details on our Phys.org web portal.

hot-gaseous-outflow-galaxy9-Oct-2025
Hot gaseous outflow detected in the galaxy NGC 5746
Using ESA's XMM-Newton satellite, astronomers have conducted deep observations of a massive galaxy known as NGC 5746. As a result, they detected a hot gaseous outflow in the galaxy. The new findings, presented Oct. 1 on the arXiv pre-print server, could shed more light on the nature of NGC 5746.
Further details on our Phys.org web portal.

Erik Kuulkers 16-Sep-2025

Erik Kuulkers appointed as new XMM-Newton Project Scientist

As of 8 September 2025, Erik Kuulkers is leading XMM-Newton as Project Scientist, taking this role over from Norbert Schartel. Since 2013, Erik has been Project or Study Scientist for various missions, including Einstein Probe, Theseus, NewAthena, and, for over 10 years, INTEGRAL. Erik's main research interests are in the realm of transient and explosive X-ray phenomena in the universe. Erik is looking forward to continue writing the success story that is X-ray astronomy with XMM-Newton, allowing scientific discoveries spanning many decades, back from Apollo 15 to the 2030s and beyond.

AO-25 Opening 19-Aug-2025

XMM-Newton Announcement of Opportunity (AO-25)

Letter of Invitation by the ESA Director of Science

Dear Colleague,

I am pleased to invite you to respond to the 25th “Announcement of Opportunity" to submit proposals for observations to be performed with the XMM-Newton observatory.

This Announcement solicits proposals to be carried out between May 2026 and April 2027. Proposers from institutes located worldwide are welcome to participate. All proposals will be subject to peer review by the XMM-Newton Observing Time Allocation Committee.

The detailed schedule of milestones of the announcement, the required software tools and the documentation are available from:

     https://www.cosmos.esa.int/web/xmm-newton/ao25

I would appreciate it if you would distribute this invitation to interested colleagues.

I wish you every success in using the XMM-Newton observatory.

Yours sincerely,
Professor Carole Mundell
Director of Science

Key milestones for this announcement

Announcement of Opportunity 19 August 2025
Due date for Proposals 10 October 2025 (12:00 UT)
Final OTAC approved program mid December 2025

 

Timeline for Phase II proposal submission

After the cycle of proposal submission and selection, the observation details for successful proposals must be entered into the observatory system. This is done during "Phase II" proposal submission.

Find below for your information the anticipated timeline for that eventual Phase II:

Start of Phase II proposal submission 13 January 2026
Closure of Phase II proposal submission 6 February 2026

 

Further details on the XMM-Newton SOC web portal.

X-ray Universe Symposium announcement 19-August-2025
The X-ray Universe 2026, Elche, Spain
The seventh meeting in the series "The X-ray Universe" is planned to be held in the Mediterranean city of Elche, Spain, from 8 to 11 June 2026. This conference series is aimed at encompassing a broad range of high-energy astrophysics topics, from solar system studies to cosmology, and at providing a showcase for results and discoveries from XMM-Newton as well as from the variety of other current missions. The scientific potential of future mission projects and the evolution of the scientific analysis landscape will be further topics for discussion.
Further details on our XMM-Newton SOC web portal.

X-ray observations 14-August-2025
Observations investigate ultraluminous X-ray sources in the galaxy NGC 5813
Using NASA's Chandra and ESA's XMM-Newton space observatories, Indian astronomers have explored the population of ultraluminous X-ray sources in the galaxy NGC 5813, which resulted in the detection of a new source of this type. The observations re-identified four known ULXs and discovered that two previously reported sources are actually eclipsing binaries and foreground sources. Most importantly, a new ULX designated CXOJ150101.11+014119.80 (S4) was detected approximately 2.65 arcminutes from the center of NGC 5813. The most luminous ULX has an average luminosity of 14.5 duodecillion erg/s, while the other four have luminosities within the range of 1.5-3.82 duodecillion erg/s. One ULX shows possible neutron star characteristics, suggesting it may be a candidate ULX pulsar.
Further details on Phys.org web portal.

X-ray observations 29-July-2025
New long-period radio transient discovered
An international team of astronomers reports the discovery of a new long-period radio transient, ASKAP J144834−685644 (ASKAP J1448−6856), using the Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder (ASKAP). The newfound transient exhibits a 1.5-hour period, steep spectrum, and elliptical polarization with emission detected across wavelengths from X-rays to radio. ESA's XMM-Newton EPIC-PN observations detected a point source 2" away from the radio position, making this one of the few long-period radio transients identified across multiple wavelengths. Multiwavelength modeling suggests it may be a near-edge-on magnetic white dwarf binary system with a magnetic field strength exceeding 1,000 Gauss, though alternative origins including isolated white dwarf pulsars remain possible.
Further details on Phys.org web portal.

X-ray observations 10-July-2025
XMM-Newton spacecraft animations released by NASA
NASA's Scientific Visualization Studio has released new animations showcasing ESA's XMM-Newton observatory in celebration of its 25th year of operations. The animations include a flyby view of the spacecraft orbiting Earth and a turntable animation with background lighting, both available in 4K resolution. These visualizations highlight XMM-Newton's role as ESA's X-ray Multi-Mirror Mission, which studies a wide variety of objects from distant galaxy clusters to planets in our solar system. NASA supports the U.S. scientific community's use of XMM-Newton and funded elements of its instrument package. The animations are available for download in multiple formats including H.264 and ProRes.
Further details on NASA SVS web portal.

X-ray observations 08-July-2025
Astronomers investigate pulsar PSR J1930+1852 and its pulsar wind nebula
Using NuSTAR and XMM-Newton satellites, astronomers from New York University (NYU) Abu Dhabi have observed a pulsar known as PSR J1930+1852 and its pulsar wind nebula (PWN) G54.1+0.3. The observations detected X-ray emission from the combined pulsar and PWN system up to about 70 keV, with the nebula itself detected at up to about 30 keV. The study found that G54.1+0.3 has a characteristic age of 2,830 years, a magnetic field of about 7µG, and the pulsar's spin period is approximately 137.2 milliseconds. The PWN shows a broken power law spectrum with break energy at 5 keV and a maximum particle energy of 400 TeV, typical parameters among young PWNe with characteristic ages of less than 5,000 years.
Further details on Phys.org web portal.

Snapshot of the XMM-Newton Users' Group web page 03-July-2025
Users' Group Meeting presentations online
The presentations given at the XMM-Newton Users' Group Meeting #26, held on 27th and 28th May 2025, at ESA/ESAC are now online.
They can be found on our XMM-Newton SOC web portal.

X-ray observations 26-June-2025
NASA shares new views of our galactic neighbor, Andromeda
A stunning new composite image of the Andromeda galaxy (M31) combines X-ray data from NASA's Chandra Observatory and ESA's XMM-Newton (red, green, blue) with ultraviolet, optical, infrared and radio observations. The X-rays reveal high-energy regions around Andromeda's central super-massive black hole and compact objects scattered across the disc, while lower-energy wavelengths map out stars, dust and gas. Released alongside a data "sonification", the image pays tribute to astronomer Vera Rubin, whose rotation-curve work on M31 provided early evidence for dark matter.
Further details on Phys.org web portal.

X-ray observations 19-June-2025
"The models were right": astronomers find 'missing' matter
Astronomers have discovered a huge filament of hot gas bridging four galaxy clusters using ESA's XMM-Newton and JAXA's Suzaku X-ray space telescopes. At 10 times as massive as our galaxy, the thread could contain some of the Universe's 'missing' matter, addressing a decades-long mystery. The filament contains around 10 times the mass of the Milky Way and connects four galaxy clusters in the Shapley Supercluster, stretching 23 million light-years through space. This research creates a new benchmark for spotting the light coming from the faint filaments of the cosmic web and reinforces our standard model of the cosmos, validating decades of simulations that suggest the 'missing' matter may truly be lurking in hard-to-see threads woven across the Universe.
Further details on ESA.int web portal.

X-ray observations 17-June-2025
Four new X-ray supernova remnants detected in the galaxy NGC 7793
Using NASA's Chandra spacecraft and ESA's XMM-Newton satellite, astronomers have investigated the galaxy NGC 7793, searching for supernova remnants (SNRs). As a result, they discovered four new X-ray SNRs in this galaxy. The newfound X-ray SNRs have X-ray luminosities between 0.88 and 5.49 undecillion erg/s and exhibit soft X-ray emission with no significant short- or long-term variability. The spectra of the SNRs show soft emission typical of hot plasma with temperatures exceeding 2.5 million K, featuring strong oxygen and neon lines. The study also detected two additional candidate X-ray SNRs that show similar soft, non-variable X-ray emission characteristics.
Further details on Phys.org web portal.

2025-06-cosmic-rays-astrophysicists-closer 10-June-2025
Where did cosmic rays come from? Astrophysicists are closer to finding out
Cosmic rays—high-energy particles moving close to the speed of light—originated from somewhere in the Milky Way galaxy and beyond, but exactly where has been a mystery since they were discovered in 1912. Shuo Zhang, MSU assistant professor of physics and astronomy, and her group led two studies that shed new light on where cosmic rays might have come from. [...] Using X-ray data from the XMM-Newton space telescope, DiKerby found a pulsar wind nebula—an expanding bubble with relativistic electrons and positions with energy injection from a pulsar. This finding established this PeVatron as a pulsar wind nebula type of cosmic ray source and is one of a few cases where scientists can identify the nature of PeVatrons.
Further details on Phys.org web portal.

X-ray observations 29-May-2025
International Collaboration Meeting for High-Energy Missions in Japan
The XMM-Newton SOC and calibration team presented the status of the XMM-Newton instruments at the latest meeting of the International Astronomical Consortium for High-Energy Calibration (IACHEC) earlier this month. The meeting was held in Osaka (Japan) and was attended by representatives from most current X-ray telesocpes, like XRISM, Chandra, NuSTAR, NICER, and many more. All talks from the meeting are public and can be found here, in particular the XMM-Newton calibration status is avilable here.
Further details on IACHEC.org web portal.

X-ray observations 11-April-2025
From boring to bursting: a giant black hole awakens
The European Space Agency's XMM-Newton is playing a crucial role in investigating unprecedented bursts of X-rays from a newly awakened black hole in the galaxy SDSS1335+0728. After being inactive for decades, the black hole suddenly began producing regular flashes of X-ray light in February 2024. These bursts, known as quasiperiodic eruptions (QPEs), are ten times longer and more luminous than typical QPEs, with a regular cadence of about 4.5 days. This rare event provides astronomers with a unique opportunity to study black hole behavior in real time and understand the mechanisms behind these powerful X-ray eruptions.
Further details on ESA.int web portal.

X-ray observations 08-April-2025
Observations explore the persistent nature of X-ray binary 4U 0728-25
Using ESA's XMM-Newton satellite, Italian astronomers have observed a Galactic X-ray binary system known as 4U 0728-25. Results of the new observations, presented in a research paper published March 28 on the arXiv preprint server, shed more light on the persistent nature of this source. The system, located about 24,800 light-years away, comprises a Be star and a neutron star (pulsar) with a pulse period of approximately 103.3 seconds. The observations detected 4U 0728-25 at a luminosity level of 90 decillion erg/s (in the energy range 2–10 keV), which is the lowest level ever observed for this source since its discovery. The spectral analysis revealed the presence of a flux excess above the main power-law component, which can be described with a black body model with high temperature (about 1.5 keV) and small emission radius (some 240 meters).
Further details on Phys.org web portal.

X-ray observations 1-April-2025
Into the X-ray Universe - Exploring Cosmic Secrets
Phenomena in the universe that are only visible in X-rays provide insights into the most extreme processes in the cosmos. Beyond the visible spectrum, high-energy events such as black holes, stellar explosions, and hot matter flows become observable. ESA’s XMM-Newton space telescope supplies the data for extensive sky surveys in the X-ray range. A key outcome of this work is a scientific catalogue based on automated source detection, which is regularly updated. Overlapping observations reveal temporal variability and lead to the discovery of previously unknown objects — a valuable resource for astrophysical research.
Further details on youtube.com.

X-ray observations 13-March-2025
Astronomers discover new supergiant fast X-ray transient, expanding rare class
Using ESA's XMM-Newton satellite, Italian astronomers have identified a new supergiant fast X-ray transient (SFXT), designated 4XMM J181330.1-175110 (J1813). SFXTs are a rare subclass of high-mass X-ray binaries characterized by brief, intense X-ray flares lasting from minutes to over an hour, typically involving a compact object accreting material from the clumpy wind of a blue supergiant companion. J1813 was initially undetected during its quiescent state but exhibited multiple X-ray flares during an active phase, with peak luminosities (in the 2–12 keV band) ranging from 10 to 400 decillion erg/s. Analysis suggests that J1813 harbors a heavily absorbed B-type star with an effective temperature of approximately 32,000 K, located between 22,800 and 42,400 light-years away. This discovery expands the known population of SFXTs, providing further insights into these rare and enigmatic systems.
Further details on Phys.org web portal.

X-ray observations 04-March-2025
X-ray signal from Helix Nebula points to planet destroyed by white dwarf
Using ESA's XMM-Newton satellite, astronomers have analyzed an unusual X-ray signal from the white dwarf WD 2226-210 at the center of the Helix Nebula. The study, published on March 4, 2025, suggests that the X-rays result from debris of a Jupiter-sized planet being pulled onto the white dwarf's surface, indicating the planet's destruction. This observation, along with data from NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory, provides evidence of a planet being consumed by its star, offering insights into the fate of planetary systems as stars evolve.
Further details on Phys.org web portal.

X-ray observations 28-Feb-2025
Astronomers Uncover Key Evidence for the Existence of Intermediate-Mass Black Hole
A team of Chinese researchers has detected, for the first time, an X-ray quasi-periodic signal from a tidal disruption event (TDE) involving an intermediate-mass black hole (IMBH). Using ESA's XMM-Newton satellite, the researchers observed an 85-second oscillating X-ray signal from a previously suggested IMBH TDE candidate. The findings, published on February 28, 2025, in Nature Astronomy, provide crucial evidence supporting the existence of IMBHs — a missing link between stellar-mass and supermassive black holes. The black hole is estimated to have a mass between 9,900 and 16,000 solar masses, placing it within the predicted range for IMBHs. This discovery opens new possibilities for detecting and studying IMBHs through X-ray timing analysis of TDEs.
Further details on nao.cas web portal.

X-ray observations 19-Feb-2025
Observations of Young Stellar Object HL Tauri Using XMM-Newton and Chandra
Using ESA's XMM-Newton satellite and NASA's Chandra X-ray observatory, astronomers have observed a young stellar object known as HL Tauri. Results of the observation campaign, presented Feb. 11 on the arXiv pre-print server, yield important insights into long-term X-ray variability and properties of this object. HL Tauri, located approximately 450 light-years away in the Taurus constellation, is a protoplanetary disk system that has garnered significant interest due to its potential for planet formation.
Further details on Phys.org web portal.

XMMSL3 Catalogue 19-Feb-2025
The third version of the XMM-Newton slew survey catalogue (XMMSL3) is now out
The third version of the XMM-Newton slew survey catalogue, XMMSL3, has been released on 19th February 2025 by the XMM-Newton Survey Science Centre (XMM-SSC) in collaboration with the SOC. This version includes an extra 8.5 years of data with respect to XMMSL3. There are 140735 X-ray detections which relate to 116598 unique sources, doubling the number of detections available in the previous version, XMMSL2. These detections come from 3120 pn slew observations that were taken by the 23rd August 2023. This catalogue version covers more than 90% of the sky, where some regions of the sky have been pointed as many as 78 times. Around 8% of all the detections are classified as extended. The median positional uncertainty of the catalogue detections is 13 arcseconds. Mean fluxes in the catalogue are ~2.8E-12 and ~6.5E-11 erg/cm²/s in the soft (0.2-2 keV) and hard (2-12 keV) X-ray band, respectively.

Details of the catalogue, the catalogue files and full XMMSL3 documentation are available on the XMM-SSC webpages at:
     http://xmmssc.irap.omp.eu/Catalogue/XMMSL3/XMMSL3.html

FITS and CSV versions of the full XMMSL3 catalogue are also available for download at
     http://www.cosmos.esa.int/web/xmm-newton/xsa

Alongside the XSA user interface, XMMSL3 is also distributed through:
The XMM-Newton XSA : http://nxsa.esac.esa.int/nxsa-web/#search
ESASky : https://sky.esa.int/esasky/
HEASARC Browse : http://heasarc.gsfc.nasa.gov/db-perl/W3Browse/w3browse.pl

Further details on the XMM-Newton SSC web portal.

Supernova remnants 06-Feb-2025
XMM-Newton finds two stray supernova remnants
When the European Space Agency’s XMM-Newton pointed its telescope at two unidentified sources of light in the outskirts of the Large Magellanic Cloud, scientists were able to confirm what seemed an unlikely discovery. They found two supernova remnants in the far reaches of our neighbouring galaxy.
The two objects that XMM-Newton looked at are shown as the two circles in the lower left of this visible-light image of the Large Magellanic Cloud. Click on the two circles to make the newly-discovered supernova remnants appear: J0624-6948 (orange, higher in the image) and J0614-7251 (blue, lower in the image). The yellow crosses represent supernova remnants that had been found before.
Further details on esa.int web portal.

SAS v22.0 31-Jan-2025
Version 22.0 of the Science Analysis System (SAS) released
The XMM-Newton SAS team is pleased to announce the release of a new version of the SAS : SAS v22.0.

Binaries for diverse flavours of Linux and Mac OS X are available at
     https://www.cosmos.esa.int/web/xmm-newton/sas-download

The main improvements of this release can be found in the Release Notes:
     https://www.cosmos.esa.int/web/xmm-newton/sas-release-notes-2200

This version of SAS is released in three 64-bit binary versions for Linux (Ubuntu 22.04LTS, Ubuntu 24.04LTS and Red HAT 8.10), and two for macOS (13.6.9, Ventura and 14.6.1, Sonoma). A version for Red HAT 9 is intended to be released shortly.

SAS analysis threads have been revised to ensure compatibility with the recently released SAS v22.0. They are available at
     https://www.cosmos.esa.int/web/xmm-newton/sas-threads

Further details on our SAS web portal.

XMM Newton 30-Jan-2025
The SOC together with its partners at NASA from the XMM-Newton Guest Observer Facility will be hosting its first virtual Data Analysis Workshop April 1-3, 2025!
This workshop, geared towards new and experienced users of XMM-Newton data, will
(1) highlight the diverse scientific studies that can be enabled by XMM-Newton,
(2) introduce beginners to the Science Analysis Software (SAS) and Extended Source Analysis System (ESAS) as well as the XMM-Newton Science Archive (XSA), and
(3) introduce beginners and experienced users alike to SciServer and Datalabs.
The workshop will be split between presentations and hands-on sessions, distributed over more than 12h duration, to allow participants in Europe as well as the US to attend at convenient times. The goal of the workshop is to improve the accessibility and usability of XMM-Newton data and its data reduction and analysis software, and to introduce the tools created for use with SciServer and Datalabs, which focus on making data reduction more accessible regardless of computing resources and expertise available at a given institution. Registration is open HERE and free of charge. To prepare for the workshop, please register for an ESA Datalabs account and familiarise yourself with the interface: REGISTER HERE. Please use the invitation code “XMM2025” when registering with Datalabs, so your account can be assigned to the workshop.
Further details on the dedicated UMBC web portal.

X-ray observations 21-Jan-2025
X-ray observations uncover merger process in a nearby low-mass galaxy cluster
Using NASA's Chandra and ESA's XMM-Newton spacecraft, an international team of astronomers have performed X-ray observations of a nearby low-mass galaxy cluster designated PSZ2 G181.06+48.47. The observational campaign, detailed in a paper published Jan. 13 on the pre-print server arXiv, uncovers essential information regarding the nature and properties of this cluster.[...] With a mass of about 420 trillion solar masses, PSZ2 G181.06+48.47 is a low-mass galaxy cluster at a redshift of 0.24. It has a radius of approximately 3.45 million light years.
Further details on Phys.org web portal.

XMM-Newton catches giant black hole’s X-ray oscillations 13-Jan-2025
Unlocking the secrets of the first Quasars: how they defy the laws of Physics to grow
The European Space Agency's XMM-Newton has detected rapidly fluctuating X-rays coming from the very edge of a supermassive black hole in the heart of a nearby galaxy. The results paint a fascinating picture that defies how we thought matter falls into such black holes, and points to a potential source of gravitational waves that ESA’s future mission, LISA, could see. XMM-Newton is showing us that black holes devour matter in more complex ways than astronomers first thought. Black holes are predictions of Albert Einstein’s theory of general relativity. They are gravitational monsters that imprison any piece of matter or energy that crosses their ‘surface’, a region of spacetime known as the event horizon.
Further details on ESA.int web portal and Science.nasa.gov web portal.