First ‘black hole triple’ system discovered: What does it mean?

Sub: Sci

Sec: Space sector

Context:

A recent study has discovered a black hole triple system in space for the first time, located about 8,000 light years away in the constellation Cygnus. The discovery could throw light into the formation of stars.
Situated in the constellation of Cygnus, the system features one of the oldest known black holes, the V404 Cygni, which is nine times as big as the Sun in our solar system.

Study and findings:

The study was carried out by researchers at the California Institute of Technology and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and was published in Nature last month.
The triple system features a central black hole, V404 Cygni, which is consuming a nearby small star that is spiralling toward it, while a more distant star orbits the black hole at a much greater distance.

About Blackholes:

Black holes are regions in space where gravity’s pull is so intense that not even light can escape.
Traditionally, scientists believe most black holes form from massive stars that end their lives in supernova explosions.

Failed Supernova:

The new finding suggests a different origin for V404 Cygni, a direct collapse instead of a supernova, raising questions about black hole formation processes.
This phenomenon occurs when a star exhausts its nuclear fuel and collapses under its own gravity without the explosive expulsion of material typical of a supernova.
They refer to this event as a failed supernova, where the collapse happens too rapidly for an explosion to take place, allowing the black hole to form gently without scattering surrounding stars.

The triple system:

Many black holes discovered until now have been part of binary systems, consisting of a black hole and a secondary object (such as a star or another black hole).
But the black hole triple not only has one star which orbits the black hole about every 6.5 days, but also a more far-off star which orbits it every 70,000 years.
Bottom of Form
However, the black hole triple will not have three members forever, as V404 Cygni is consuming the nearer star.
This suggests that some already discovered binary systems could have been triple systems at some point, with the black hole later devouring one of its members.