Cosmic spaghetti

Block holes are formed when massive stars die — their immense mass continues to collapse into a concentrated 'hole' so dense that even light cannot escape it. The gravitational forces are so intense, and change so quickly around the edge of a black hole, that if you were unfortunate enough to stand next to one, the force exerted on your feet would be much stronger than that exerted on your head! So much so, in fact, that the massive change in force would be stronger than the forces holding your body in its normal shape - so scientists have predicted that in such a situation your body would be stretched — in a phenomenon dubbed "Spaghettification". This graphic will form part of the "The Living Universe" exhibition, to be displayed at the ESO Supernova.