On the edge of the milky way, a star circles an all-consuming black hole in the tightest orbit known to man. Some 14,800 light-years away, the white dwarf star orbits a stellar-mass black hole twice every hour at a distance of around 2.5 times that of Earth to the moon, a new study from the University of Alberta reveals. It wasn't until 2015 that radio observations revealed that the pair likely contains a black hole, which is devouring material from the companion star. Although the white dwarf does not appear to be in danger of falling in or being torn apart by the black hole, its fate is uncertain. The study, The ultracompact nature of the black hole candidate X-ray binary 47 Tuc X9, is also available online.

Source: CBC News March 14, 2017 15:00 UTC