Podcast Episode Details
Back to Podcast Episodes
Black Hole Winds at 60,000 km/s: First Real-Time Observation of Galactic Super-Eruptions
Season 2 Episode 290
For the first time ever, astronomers have caught a supermassive black hole throwing a cosmic tantrum in real-time.
Scientists watched as a black hole in galaxy NGC 3783 unleashed winds screaming at 60,000 kilometers per second—roughly 20% the speed of light—within 24 hours of a massive X-ray flare. Using the XMM-Newton and XRISM telescopes, researchers captured the unprecedented moment when magnetic fields violently shifted, triggering these galaxy-shaping outflows.
What's shocking? These cosmic eruptions mirror solar flares from our own Sun, just scaled up to mind-bending proportions. We break down how these black hole winds sculpt entire galaxies, control star formation across cosmic distances, and why witnessing this event unfold so rapidly is rewriting our understanding of how the universe's most powerful objects shape everything around them.
Published on 2 days, 6 hours ago