A streak of light may not be a black hole fleeing its galaxy after all

The trail of starlight may just be a spiral galaxy seen edge on

A photo of stars with Galaxy IC 5249 in the center with a green oval around it.

Galaxy IC 5249 (circled) is a spiral galaxy viewed edge on from Earth. That galaxy looks similar to a trail of light previously suggested to be stars that formed in the wake of a runaway black hole, casting doubt on the black hole’s existence, researchers say.