Sunday, February 05, 2017

The "Bullet"


Mike Mcrae reports in Science alert,
Astronomers spot a strange, supersonic space cloud screeching through our galaxy
Powered by a rogue black hole.

While focussing on the remains of an exploded star roughly 10,000 light-years away, a team of Japanese astronomers have stumbled across a mysterious cloud of molecules tearing through the Milky Way. So quickly, in fact, they’ve nick-named it the unknown phenomenon the 'Bullet'.

The cause of this cloud’s ridiculous speed isn’t clear, but so far all signs suggest it's been sent hurtling through space thanks to a rogue black hole.

On account of their light-sucking talent, black holes aren’t known for being all that easy to spot. They sometimes reveal themselves by stealing material from a nearby star, heating it up and forcing it to emit X-rays.
Read more here.

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