{
  "abstract": "The centers of galaxies harbor the densest stellar environments, where a massive black hole (MBH) accelerates stars to such high velocities that direct collisions can result in high-energetic phenomena, such as gravitational wave sources, kilonovae, and supernova-like transients. These collisions can reshape the cluster’s density profile and release gas that can be subsequently accreted by the MBH. However, the evolving rates of such phenomena from self-consistent dynamics around mass-growing MBHs remain largely unexplored. In this work, we simulate nuclear star clusters (NSCs) across a range of masses and density profiles by employing the GNC Monte Carlo code, which self-consistently models stellar dynamics and the subsequent accretion of released gas. We find that stellar collisions flatten the density cusp in the innermost regions ( r ≲ 10 ⁻³ −10 ⁻² pc) within ∼0.1−1 Gyr. While high initial collision rates in steep cusps quickly decline due to stellar depletion, the interplay between collisions and MBH growth is important only in massive NSCs ( M ⋆ ∼ 10 ⁹ M ⊙ ). As MBH grows, increased stellar velocities shift the balance toward destructive collisions, the relative velocities of which can be ≳2500 km s ⁻¹ . Consequently, present-day destructive collision rates in massive clusters remain high (10 ⁻⁴ ∼ 10 ⁻³ yr ⁻¹ ), whereas they are smaller in Milky Way–like NSCs or negligible in smaller NSCs. Our results highlight a crucial synergy between stellar dynamics and MBH growth, identifying massive galaxies as prime targets for observing transients from destructive stellar collisions.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "Guangzhou University",
    "Key Laboratory for Astronomical Observation and Technology of Guangzhou",
    "Astronomy Science and Technology Research Laboratory of Department of Education of Guangdong Province",
    "Universitat Politècnica de València",
    "Max-Planck-Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics",
    "Kavli Institute for Astronomy and Astrophysics"
  ],
  "article_type": null,
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 2,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1,
        2
      ],
      "name": "Fupeng Zhang",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-0403-9522"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        3,
        4,
        5
      ],
      "name": "Pau Amaro Seoane"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/2dytwjcy7cq8v.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.3847/1538-4357/aeac13",
  "fulltext_url": null,
  "id": "2dytwjcy7cq8v",
  "issns": [
    "1538-4357",
    "0004-637X"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/1538-4357/aeac13",
  "language": null,
  "licence": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "licence_label": "CC BY 4.0",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "feed-journal",
      "astronomy/general"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": null,
  "pdf_url": "https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/1538-4357/aeac13/pdf",
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-10-30",
  "publisher": "American Astronomical Society",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/2dytwjcy7cq8v.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:17:17Z",
      "native_id": "10.3847/1538-4357/aeac13",
      "source": "feed-iop",
      "url": "https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/1538-4357/aeac13"
    },
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:18:11Z",
      "native_id": "10.3847/1538-4357/aeac13",
      "source": "crossref",
      "url": "https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/1538-4357/aeac13"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "astronomy",
      "origin": "journal-openalex:3103|Stellar, planetary, and galactic studies",
      "subfield": "stellar"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Stellar Collisions from Self-consistent Stellar Dynamics around Growing Supermassive Black Holes",
  "title_text": "Stellar Collisions from Self-consistent Stellar Dynamics around Growing Supermassive Black Holes",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-11-01T00:20:38Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/2dytwjcy7cq8v",
  "venue": "The Astrophysical Journal",
  "versions": []
}