A supermassive black hole at the center of the active galactic nuclei NGC 4696 is an efficient eater of space material.

A recent study found that a supermassive black hole’s process of generating energy from the matter falling towards its gravity well is much more efficient than nuclear or fossil fuels. A car with such fuel efficiency cold drive for one billion miles on a single tank of gas, they say.

One such black hole giant sits at the center of NGC 4696, an active galactic nuclei that sits 150 million light-years from Earth. Shown here in an image taken by the Chandra X-ray Observatory, the object is composed of a vast cloud of hot gas (in red) surrounded by high energy bubbles 10,000 light-years across.

• Black Holes are Actually Green

-- Tariq Malik

Credit: X-ray: NASA/CXC/KIPAC/S.Allen et al; Radio: NRAO/VLA/G.Taylor; Infrared: NASA/ESA/McMaster Univ./W.Harris