India, Feb. 13 -- Massive star in Andromeda collapsed directly into a black hole

No supernova explosion preceded the disappearance

Event identified in archival NASA NEOWISE infrared data

Findings published in Science provide rare evidence of direct collapse

Scientists have captured what they describe as the clearest view yet of a star collapsing directly into a black hole without first exploding as a supernova.

The star, located in the Andromeda galaxy around 2.5 million light years from Earth, gradually brightened in infrared light over three years before fading dramatically and disappearing, leaving behind a shell of dust. Although a National Aeronautics and Space Administration telescope recorded the phenomenon in 2014, it took ye...