Black Hole Found Near Earth...01/17/00

ATLANTA (AP) - Four bursts of X-ray energy have alerted astronomers to a black hole just 1,600 light years away from Earth, practically on the doorstep in astronomical terms. The black hole was discovered last September after an Australian amateur astronomer noticed the suddenly brightening of a star and notified the pros. Donald Smith, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology astronomer, and others focused X-ray detectors on the target star and quickly got a surprise. On Sept. 14, the black hole announced its presence with an eruption of X-rays that was brief, but dramatic. Three other eruptions followed, each one lasting less than two hours. But it was enough for Smith and a team of radio astronomers to determine that the energy was coming from a black hole.