Q&A: Black Holes

Q:
What are black holes made of?

A:
When a collapsed star has more mass than three suns, it forms a black hole in space. These bizarre objects are found in rare double star systems or in the centers of galaxies where supermassive black holes have formed. X-ray telescopes provide an unequaled view of super- heated matter that is swirling toward the event horizon of a black hole. For more information on black holes, please see our Black Hole Field Guide (http://chandra.harvard.edu/xray_sources/blackholes.html).