Black Hole Jet Surpasses Death Star in Power • CEFR B2 News for English Learners
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Supermassive Black Hole Unleashes Planet-Destroying Jet
February 5, 2026 — In what researchers are describing as one of the most luminous and energetic events ever witnessed in the cosmos, a supermassive black hole has generated a relativistic jet of charged particles so powerful that astronomers have resorted to comparing it to the Death Star from Star Wars—the fictional weapon capable of annihilating entire planets.
Origins of a Cosmic Catastrophe
The phenomenon, catalogued as AT2018hyz, began when a star strayed fatally close to a supermassive black hole residing in an otherwise unremarkable galaxy 665 million light-years from Earth. The black hole’s immense tidal forces—the result of gravitational gradients across the star’s diameter—began stretching and ultimately shredding the stellar body in what astrophysicists term a “tidal disruption event” (TDE).
Dr. Yvette Cendes, a radio astronomer at the University of Oregon who led the international research team, explained that the initial 2018 observation gave no indication of what was to follow. “There was nothing from that initial discovery that made us think something like this was going to happen years later,” she noted.
An Unprecedented Reawakening
The situation changed dramatically in 2022, when the black hole suddenly began emitting an extraordinarily powerful jet of particles accelerated to nearly the speed of light. The jet, which Cendes has humorously nicknamed “Jetty McJetface,” has since grown to 50 times its original luminosity—and it’s still intensifying.
“Planets are going to be destroyed for the first few light-years,” Cendes told Space.com, acknowledging uncertainty about precisely how far the destructive reach extends.
Understanding the Mechanics
What distinguishes this event is its rarity: relativistic jets occur in merely 1% of all observed tidal disruption events. The remaining 99% produce only spherical outflows moving at considerably slower velocities.
The energy output tells the story. While a non-relativistic TDE might release approximately 2 × 10⁵⁰ ergs of energy, the jet scenario—which Cendes favors given the extraordinary luminosity—could reach 5 × 10⁵⁵ ergs. For context, our sun outputs roughly 10³³ ergs at its peak.
Current models suggest the jet will reach peak brightness in 2027, potentially doubling its current intensity before gradually diminishing.
Looking Ahead
The forthcoming Square Kilometer Array telescope promises to revolutionize astronomers’ ability to survey the radio sky with unprecedented precision, potentially revealing many more such extraordinary cosmic events.
The research findings were published on February 5, 2026, in The Astrophysical Journal.
Vocabulary Help 📚
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| annihilate | to destroy completely |
| tidal forces | gravitational differences that can stretch or tear objects apart |
| cataloge | to record and classify systematically |
| luminosity | the amount of light or energy something produces |
| unprecedented | never done or known before |
| collimated | (of light or particles) made into a parallel beam |
Grammar Focus 🎯
Complex Noun Phrases: - “one of the most luminous and energetic events ever witnessed” - “the fictional weapon capable of annihilating entire planets”
These extended noun phrases pack a lot of information efficiently.
Reporting Verbs: - Cendes explained that… - She noted that… - Cendes acknowledged uncertainty…
Different reporting verbs convey different attitudes toward the information.
Source: Space.com