Illustration of a black hole disk flare in OJ 287 galaxy. This galaxy contains one of the largest black holes (right) to be discovered. OJ 287 galaxy also has a smaller black hole (left) that orbits around the larger black hole (right). This large black hole is surrounded by a disk of gas. Twice every 12 years, the smaller black hole crashes through this disk of gas, producing a flare brighter than 1 trillion stars. These flares occur irregularly in the 12 year orbit. This is due to the smaller black hole's elongated orbit as well as its movement relative to the larger disk.