Cygnus X-1 contains the first black hole ever confirmed. And it recently recorded another first. Astronomers measured the details of twin “jets” of particles that shoot into space from its poles. The jets are firing at almost half the speed of light. And they have the power of 10,000 Suns.

The system consists of the black hole and a supergiant star. The black hole, which was discovered in 1964, is 20 times the mass of the Sun. The star is twice that mass.

The star is extremely hot and bright. It blows a thick wind of hot gas into space. The black hole captures some of the gas, which forms a swirling, super-hot disk around it. Magnetic fields grab some of the gas before it falls into the black hole, and fire it back into space through the jets.

Astronomers have seen jets from many black holes. But this is the first time they’ve precisely measured a jet’s power and speed. Those details are important because the jets can have a big influence on the surroundings. They can blow away gas and dust, preventing the birth of more stars. Or they can squeeze clouds of gas and dust, triggering the birth of stars. So the details help us understand the role of black holes in the evolution of entire galaxies.

Cygnus is in the eastern sky at nightfall. Although Cygnus X-1 is too faint to see, it’s about half way between the swan’s bill and the intersection of its body and wings.

Script by Damond Benningfield