Lunar Smartphones, Daytime Comet, and Jetty McJetface's Cosmic Show

0:00 Speaker 1: Welcome to Astronomy Daily, your source for the latest space

0:04 Speaker 1: and astronomy news.

0:06 Speaker 2: I'm Anna and I'm Avery. We're coming to you on Friday,

0:09 Speaker 2: February six, twenty twenty six, and today's show is packed

0:13 Speaker 2: with some truly incredible stories from across the cosmos.

0:17 Speaker 1: We've got everything from lunar smartphones to daytime visible comments.

0:22 Speaker 1: Let's dive into today's headlines. We're looking at NASA's new

0:26 Speaker 1: policy that let's astronauts bring their phones to the Moon,

0:30 Speaker 1: a newly discovered commet that might become visible in broad daylight,

0:35 Speaker 1: the best viewing opportunity for Mercury all year, China's ambitious

0:40 Speaker 1: plans for space based data centers, new theories about what

0:45 Speaker 1: really powers the Milky Way's core, and a star shredding

0:49 Speaker 1: black hole with an absolutely unforgettable nickname.

0:53 Speaker 2: That nickname is Pure Gold. Anna. But first, let's talk

0:57 Speaker 2: about something that might seem mundane but is act pretty

1:00 Speaker 2: revolutionary for space exploration.

1:02 Speaker 1: Avery. I have to admit, when I first saw this story,

1:05 Speaker 1: my first thought was, wait, they couldn't do that before, right?

1:10 Speaker 2: It seems so obvious in twenty twenty six. But here's

1:13 Speaker 2: the thing. Getting any new technology approved for spacefly is

1:17 Speaker 2: incredibly difficult. Everything has to be tested to make sure

1:20 Speaker 2: it won't interfere with critical systems or cause problems in

1:23 Speaker 2: the extreme environment of space.

1:26 Speaker 1: And NASA just announced that starting with the Crew twelve

1:29 Speaker 1: mission to the International Space Station next week, and more importantly,

1:34 Speaker 1: with the highly anticipated Artemis two lunar flyby mission in March,

1:39 Speaker 1: astronauts will be allowed to bring their smartphones.

1:42 Speaker 2: This is actually a pretty big deal from a documentation perspective.

1:46 Speaker 2: NASA administrator Jared Isaacman wrote on social media that they're

1:49 Speaker 2: giving crews the tools to capture special moments for their

1:52 Speaker 2: families and share inspiring images and video with the world.

1:56 Speaker 1: The timing is perfect too. Until now, the new TUST

2:00 Speaker 1: cameras approved for these missions were decade old Nikon DSLRs

2:04 Speaker 1: and GoPros. Those are great cameras, but there's something more

2:08 Speaker 1: spontaneous and accessible about using a smartphone.

2:12 Speaker 2: Absolutely think about it. With iPhones and Android devices at hand,

2:16 Speaker 2: astronauts can be much more spontaneous with image and video gathering.

2:20 Speaker 2: We might see more behind the scenes moments, more real

2:23 Speaker 2: time documentation of their experiences.

2:26 Speaker 1: I am already imagining the tiktoks from zero gravity, though

2:29 Speaker 1: I have to wonder if that's something NASA is prepared for.

2:33 Speaker 2: Well. Isaacman did mention that what's equally important is that

2:37 Speaker 2: they challenged long standing processes and qualified modern hardware for

2:41 Speaker 2: spaceflight on an expedited timeline. That operational urgency, he says,

2:46 Speaker 2: will serve NASA well as they pursue high value science

2:49 Speaker 2: and research.

2:50 Speaker 1: Now I should mention this isn't technically the first time

2:54 Speaker 1: smartphones have gone to space. SpaceX allowed them for their

2:57 Speaker 1: private astronaut missions, but this is the first time NASA

3:01 Speaker 1: is officially approving them for their own crude.

3:04 Speaker 2: Flights and for Artemis two, this is huge. We're talking

3:07 Speaker 2: about the first time humans will orbit the Moon since

3:10 Speaker 2: the Apollo era, having modern smartphones to document that historic journey.

3:15 Speaker 2: That's going to give us perspectives we've never had before.

3:18 Speaker 1: Ultra wide angle selfies with the Moon in the background.

3:22 Speaker 1: I'm here for it, though I do hope Mission Control

3:24 Speaker 1: sets up some kind of social media guidelines first, no doubt.

3:29 Speaker 2: All right, from lunar smartphones to cosmic visitors, let's talk

3:32 Speaker 2: about something that's got the astronomy community really excited.

3:36 Speaker 1: Avery This is the kind of story that makes you

3:38 Speaker 1: want to mark your calendar. A newly discovered comet has

3:42 Speaker 1: the potential to become one of the brightest astronomical events

3:46 Speaker 1: of the year.

3:47 Speaker 2: I'm at c Slash twenty twenty six, a one nickname

3:50 Speaker 2: maps after the four astronomers who discovered it, Mari, Attard, Parrot,

3:55 Speaker 2: and Signorette, was spotted on January thirteenth using a remotely

3:59 Speaker 2: operated telescope in Chile's Atacama Desert.

4:02 Speaker 1: And what makes this discovery so exciting is that it's

4:06 Speaker 1: a member of the Kreut's sungrazing comet family. These are

4:10 Speaker 1: comets that pass extremely close to the Sun, and historically

4:14 Speaker 1: they've been responsible for some of the most spectacular celestial

4:18 Speaker 1: displays ever witnessed.

4:20 Speaker 2: We're talking about comments that in the past became bright

4:24 Speaker 2: enough to be seen in broad daylight. The Great Comet

4:27 Speaker 2: of eighteen eighty two was reportedly one hundred times brighter

4:31 Speaker 2: than the full moon, and the Great Comet of nineteen

4:34 Speaker 2: sixty five I Kaseeki was easily visible with the naked

4:38 Speaker 2: eye during the day.

4:40 Speaker 1: Now here's the crucial detail. All Kreut's sungrazers are believed

4:45 Speaker 1: to be fragments of a much larger comet that broke

4:48 Speaker 1: apart hundreds or even thousands of years ago. Each time

4:52 Speaker 1: one of these fragments makes its close pass by the Sun,

4:55 Speaker 1: there's a chance it could fragment further or even completely disintegrate.

5:00 Speaker 2: Right, so there's a big if here. Comet Maps will

5:04 Speaker 2: pass within just one hundred and twenty thousand kilometers of

5:07 Speaker 2: the Sun's surface in early April twenty twenty six. That's

5:11 Speaker 2: incredibly close. If it survives that encounter, it could become

5:15 Speaker 2: a spectacular site.

5:17 Speaker 1: What's particularly promising is that Maps was discovered much farther

5:21 Speaker 1: from the Sun than any previously discovered sun grazer. It

5:25 Speaker 1: was spotted at about three hundred and eight million kilometers out.

5:29 Speaker 1: The previous record holder for farthest discovery was comet Ikiya Seki,

5:34 Speaker 1: which turned out to be the brightest comet of the

5:36 Speaker 1: twentieth century.

5:38 Speaker 2: That said, technology has advanced significantly since nineteen sixty five,

5:43 Speaker 2: so we're better at detecting fainter objects earlier. That means

5:47 Speaker 2: Maps probably isn't as large as the Kiyoseki, so it's

5:50 Speaker 2: unlikely to be quite as bright.

5:52 Speaker 1: But the fact that we caught it so early is

5:55 Speaker 1: still a good sign. It suggests maps is either a

5:58 Speaker 1: reasonably large or it's currently an outburst. Recent observations show

6:04 Speaker 1: it steadily brightening, which points toward it being a larger

6:08 Speaker 1: fragment rather than already falling apart.

6:11 Speaker 2: So what can skywatchers expect? Well, the best viewing will

6:15 Speaker 2: be in early April as a comet approaches the Sun.

6:18 Speaker 2: If it survives its close pass, it could become visible

6:20 Speaker 2: to the naked eye, possibly even during daylight hours as

6:24 Speaker 2: it swings closest to the Sun.

6:26 Speaker 1: Observers in the southern hemisphere will have better viewing opportunities,

6:30 Speaker 1: with the comet appearing higher in the sky during morning twilight.

6:34 Speaker 1: Northern hemisphere observers will have a more challenging view with

6:37 Speaker 1: the comet staying very close to the Sun and low

6:41 Speaker 1: on the horizon.

6:42 Speaker 2: I love that the astronomy community is already tempering expectations

6:46 Speaker 2: while still allowing for optimism. This could be amazing, or

6:49 Speaker 2: it could fizzle out. That's the unpredictable nature of comets.

6:53 Speaker 1: And that unpredictability is part of what makes them so exciting.

6:57 Speaker 1: We'll definitely be keeping our eyes on common maps as

7:00 Speaker 1: April approaches.

7:02 Speaker 2: Speaking of things to watch in the sky, there's another

7:05 Speaker 2: elusive celestial object that's putting on its best show right now.

7:09 Speaker 1: You know, Avery, Mercury gets a bad reputation as the

7:13 Speaker 1: elusive planet, but I think that's a bit unfair.

7:17 Speaker 2: I completely agree. Most astronomy books make it sound like

7:21 Speaker 2: Mercury is almost impossible to see. But the truth is

7:24 Speaker 2: you just need to know when and where to.

7:26 Speaker 1: Look exactly, And right now we're entering the best evening

7:31 Speaker 1: viewing window for Mercury and all of twenty twenty six

7:34 Speaker 1: for observers in the Northern Hemisphere observers.

7:38 Speaker 2: Mercury began its best evening apparition of the year today

7:41 Speaker 2: February sixth, even though it was only twelve degree from

7:44 Speaker 2: the Sun, initially, it was shining at a bright minus

7:48 Speaker 2: one point one, nearly as bright as Serious, the brightest

7:51 Speaker 2: star in the night sky.

7:53 Speaker 1: What's great is that on each of the next thirteen evenings,

7:56 Speaker 1: Mercury gets progressively higher in the sky. And that's a

8:00 Speaker 1: bit later. By February nineteenth, it reaches what's called greatest elongation,

8:06 Speaker 1: its maximum angular separation from the Sun at eighteen degrees.

8:10 Speaker 2: And here's what makes this appearance so special for mid

8:13 Speaker 2: northern latitude observers. Almost all of that separation is vertical.

8:18 Speaker 2: Mercury will stand nearly seventeen degrees above the horizon at sunset,

8:23 Speaker 2: and it won't set until after astronomical twilight ends.

8:26 Speaker 1: So we're talking about being able to see Mercury in

8:30 Speaker 1: a truly dark night sky more than an hour and

8:33 Speaker 1: a half after sunset, jining at magnitude minus zero point four.

8:38 Speaker 1: That's brighter than the star Arcturus.

8:41 Speaker 2: Now, there's a really nice celestial alignment coming up on

8:44 Speaker 2: February eighteenth. A slender, waxing crescent moon only about two

8:49 Speaker 2: percent illuminated, will appear very close to Mercury. The moon

8:53 Speaker 2: will be this beautiful smile in the western sky, with

8:56 Speaker 2: Mercury hovering right above it like a brilliant star.

9:00 Speaker 1: Here's something special. If you live in Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia,

9:06 Speaker 1: or Florida, you might actually see the moon pass directly

9:10 Speaker 1: in front of Mercury around seven thirty seven pm Eastern

9:14 Speaker 1: time and seven thirty pm Central time.

9:17 Speaker 2: That's called an occultation, and it's quite rare even if

9:21 Speaker 2: you're not in those states. The close pairing of the

9:24 Speaker 2: crescent moon and bright Mercury will make for a stunning

9:27 Speaker 2: view about forty five minutes after sunset.

9:30 Speaker 1: Now, after its peak on February nineteenth, Mercury fades rapidly.

9:36 Speaker 1: Remember we talked about how Mercury shows phases like the moon.

9:40 Speaker 1: While at the beginning of February, Mercury's disc was ninety

9:44 Speaker 1: seven percent illuminated, by the time it reaches greatest elongation,

9:48 Speaker 1: it's only fifty percent illuminated, like a half moon, and.

9:52 Speaker 2: In the following days that rapidly decreasing phase results in

9:56 Speaker 2: a dramatic loss in brightness. By February twenty fourth, it'll

10:00 Speaker 2: have faded from magnitude minus zero point four to magnitude

10:04 Speaker 2: plus zero point six, losing more than a full magnitude

10:07 Speaker 2: and brightness.

10:08 Speaker 1: By February twenty sixth, it'll be down to magnitude plus

10:13 Speaker 1: one point three, just slightly brighter than the star Regulus

10:17 Speaker 1: and appearing as a slender crescent only seventeen percent illuminated.

10:22 Speaker 1: That's probably going to be the last good chance to

10:25 Speaker 1: spot it before it disappears into the sunset glow.

10:29 Speaker 2: So the message is clear. If you want to see

10:31 Speaker 2: Mercury at its best, don't wait the next two weeks

10:35 Speaker 2: offer the best viewing opportunity of the entire year. Find

10:38 Speaker 2: a clear western horizon, look about forty five minutes after sunset,

10:43 Speaker 2: and you'll be rewarded with a bright star that's actually

10:46 Speaker 2: our Solar System's innermost planet.

10:49 Speaker 1: And honestly, once you see it, you'll wonder why people

10:52 Speaker 1: ever called it elusive. All Right, shifting gears now to

10:56 Speaker 1: some developments in space technology and infrastructure. The race to

11:00 Speaker 1: build data centers in space is heating up, and China

11:04 Speaker 1: just announced they're joining the competition in a big way.

11:08 Speaker 2: The state owned China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation has

11:12 Speaker 2: announced that space based data centers will be part of

11:15 Speaker 2: their new five year plane for expanding China's presence in space.

11:19 Speaker 1: This is part of a larger initiative that also includes

11:23 Speaker 1: asteroid mining, space debris monitoring, and even space tourism. But

11:28 Speaker 1: the data center component is particularly interesting because it puts

11:32 Speaker 1: China in direct competition with several US companies already working

11:37 Speaker 1: on this concept.

11:38 Speaker 2: According to the China Global Television Network, the plan will

11:42 Speaker 2: target an integrated space system architecture and combining cloud, edge

11:47 Speaker 2: and terminal technologies. The goal is to enable computing power

11:51 Speaker 2: storage and transmission capabilities from space.

11:54 Speaker 1: Now, why are so many countries and companies suddenly interested

11:59 Speaker 1: in putting data centers in orbit? Well, it comes down

12:02 Speaker 1: to resources. Data centers, especially those powering AI systems, require

12:08 Speaker 1: enormous amounts of energy and real estate, and.

12:11 Speaker 2: Both of those are becoming more expensive and limited on Earth.

12:15 Speaker 2: In space, solar power is abundant and reliable, the sun

12:19 Speaker 2: is always shining, Plus there's no shortage of real estate

12:22 Speaker 2: in orbit.

12:23 Speaker 1: Several US companies are already working on this. SpaceX plans

12:28 Speaker 1: to launch space based data centers, initially using modified Starlink satellites.

12:33 Speaker 1: Elon Musk's long term plans even include building AI satellite

12:38 Speaker 1: factories on the Moon that would launch satellites viel railguns.

12:42 Speaker 2: That's very Elon. Meanwhile, Houston based Axiom Space already launched

12:48 Speaker 2: the first components for its orbiting data center last year,

12:51 Speaker 2: and Google is looking into launching data centers to support

12:54 Speaker 2: its own AI infrastructure.

12:56 Speaker 1: The concept was even discussed at the World Economum and

13:00 Speaker 1: Davos last month. A panel including European Space Agency Director

13:05 Speaker 1: General Joseph Ashbacker talked about ensuring that fast moving technological

13:11 Speaker 1: developments like Internet infrastructure are properly protected.

13:15 Speaker 2: There is one significant concern that was raised, though. With

13:19 Speaker 2: so many satellites and data centers being planned for orbit,

13:23 Speaker 2: we're looking at a dramatic increase in the number of

13:25 Speaker 2: objects in space. That raises questions about orbital debris, satellite collisions,

13:30 Speaker 2: and the long term sustainability of the space environment.

13:34 Speaker 1: Right we already have issues with space debris. Adding thousands

13:38 Speaker 1: more satellites for data centers could exacerbate that problem. It's

13:43 Speaker 1: going to require careful planning and international cooperation to make

13:47 Speaker 1: sure we don't create an unsustainable situation in orbit.

13:51 Speaker 2: The next five years are going to be really interesting

13:54 Speaker 2: as we see how this unfolds. Will space spased data

13:57 Speaker 2: centers become the norm, or will we find find that

14:00 Speaker 2: the challenges outweigh the benefits. Time will tell.

14:03 Speaker 1: From the future of computing to the very heart of

14:06 Speaker 1: our galaxy. Our next story challenges something we thought we

14:10 Speaker 1: knew for certain. Avery This story is fascinating because it

14:15 Speaker 1: challenges one of the fundamental assumptions about our galaxy.

14:18 Speaker 2: For decades, the astronomical community has accepted that there's a

14:22 Speaker 2: super massive black hole called Sagittarius, a star at the

14:27 Speaker 2: center of our Milky Way. This black hole, with a

14:30 Speaker 2: mass of about four million sons, was thought to govern

14:33 Speaker 2: the orbits of nearby stars and shape the gravitational environment

14:38 Speaker 2: of our galactic core.

14:39 Speaker 1: But now a new study published in Monthly Notices of

14:43 Speaker 1: the Royal Astronomical Society is proposing something radical. What if

14:48 Speaker 1: it's not a black hole at all? What if it's

14:51 Speaker 1: actually an enormous, dense core of dark matter.

14:54 Speaker 2: This is a pretty bold claim. The research was conducted

14:58 Speaker 2: by an international team from our Argentina, Italy and other institutions.

15:02 Speaker 2: They're suggesting that what we've been calling a super massive

15:06 Speaker 2: black hole could actually be an exotic structure composed of

15:09 Speaker 2: fermionic dark matter.

15:11 Speaker 1: Let me explain what that means. Fermionic dark matter is

15:15 Speaker 1: composed of light particles called fermions that follow the poly

15:20 Speaker 1: exclusion principle. This type of dark matter could form a

15:24 Speaker 1: highly dense but non singular structure, in other words, incredibly compact,

15:29 Speaker 1: but not technically a black hole.

15:32 Speaker 2: What's clever about this model is that it proposes a

15:34 Speaker 2: dual component system. There would be a dense inner core

15:38 Speaker 2: at the galactic center, but it would transition smoothly into

15:41 Speaker 2: an extended, diffuse halo that envelops the entire galaxy.

15:45 Speaker 1: And this is where it gets really interesting. This same

15:49 Speaker 1: dark matter structure could explain both the violent orbits of

15:53 Speaker 1: stars very close to the galactic center and the gentle

15:56 Speaker 1: rotation of stars in the outer regions of the galaxy,

16:00 Speaker 1: all without needing a black hole.

16:02 Speaker 2: The team looked at the s stars. These are stars

16:04 Speaker 2: that orbit the galactic center at incredible speeds up to

16:08 Speaker 2: thousands of kilometers per second. The traditional explanation is that

16:12 Speaker 2: they're orbiting a super massive black.

16:14 Speaker 1: Hole, but the fermionic dark matter model can also explain

16:18 Speaker 1: these orbits. The dense core would be compact and massive

16:22 Speaker 1: enough to create the same gravitational pull that we've been

16:25 Speaker 1: attributing to a black hole.

16:27 Speaker 2: Now here's a crucial point. In twenty twenty two, the

16:30 Speaker 2: Event Horizon telescope captured the first image of what we've

16:34 Speaker 2: been calling the shadow of Sagittarius, a star. You'd think

16:38 Speaker 2: that would prove it's a black hole.

16:39 Speaker 1: Right, you'd think, But the researchers point out that the

16:43 Speaker 1: dense dark matter core can also mimic this shadow. It

16:47 Speaker 1: bends light with such intense force that it creates a

16:50 Speaker 1: central darkness surrounded by a bright ring, the same visual

16:55 Speaker 1: signature we'd expect from a black hole.

16:57 Speaker 2: Lead author Valentina Crespy noticed that their model explains the

17:01 Speaker 2: star orbits the galaxy's rotation, and it's consistent with that

17:05 Speaker 2: famous black hole shadow image.

17:07 Speaker 1: The team statistical analysis shows that with current data, we

17:11 Speaker 1: can't yet decisively distinguish between the traditional black hole scenario

17:16 Speaker 1: and the fermionic dark matter one. But what makes the

17:19 Speaker 1: dark matter model attractive is that it provides a unified framework.

17:23 Speaker 2: Instead of having the black hole as one thing and

17:26 Speaker 2: dark matter as something separate, this model suggests they could

17:29 Speaker 2: be two manifestations of the same continuous substance.

17:33 Speaker 1: PO author doctor Carlos Argueez made an important point. This

17:37 Speaker 1: is the first time a dark matter model has managed

17:40 Speaker 1: to reconcile such vastly different scales. They can explain everything

17:44 Speaker 1: from the central star orbits to the galaxy's overall rotation

17:48 Speaker 1: curve using the same dark matter structure.

17:51 Speaker 2: So what's next. Well, the team says that more precise

17:55 Speaker 2: observations will be crucial. Instruments like the gravity interparometer on

17:59 Speaker 2: chi is very large telescope could help distinguish between the

18:03 Speaker 2: two scenarios.

18:04 Speaker 1: They're also looking for the unique signature of photon rings,

18:08 Speaker 1: a key feature of black holes that would be absent

18:11 Speaker 1: in the dark matter core scenario. If future observations don't

18:15 Speaker 1: find these photon rings, that would be strong evidence for

18:18 Speaker 1: the dark matter model.

18:20 Speaker 2: This is such a great example of how science works.

18:23 Speaker 2: We have this well established theory about Sagittarius a star

18:27 Speaker 2: being a black hole, and it might still be. But

18:30 Speaker 2: it's important that scientists are willing to challenge these assumptions

18:33 Speaker 2: and explore alternative explanations.

18:35 Speaker 1: Absolutely and regardless of which model turns out to be correct,

18:40 Speaker 1: We're learning more about dark matter, black holes, and the

18:43 Speaker 1: fundamental nature of what sits at the heart of our galaxy.

18:47 Speaker 1: It's exciting stuff.

18:48 Speaker 2: And speaking of black holes, our final story today features

18:52 Speaker 2: one with an absolutely delightful name that's doing something truly unprecedented.

18:57 Speaker 1: Okay, Avery, I have to start by saying, jettymcjetface might

19:02 Speaker 1: be the best astronomical object name I've ever heard.

19:06 Speaker 2: It's amazing, right. University of Oregon astrophysicist doctor Vet Kendis

19:11 Speaker 2: coined the nickname as a reference to body MC boat Face,

19:15 Speaker 2: that British research vessel that became Internet famous when a

19:18 Speaker 2: public poll chose its name.

19:20 Speaker 1: But the name might be playful, the phenomenon is dead serious.

19:24 Speaker 1: We're talking about one of the most energetic and brightest

19:27 Speaker 1: events ever detected in the universe.

19:30 Speaker 2: Let's back up and explain what's happening here. In twenty eighteen,

19:34 Speaker 2: astronomers detected what's called a title disruption event. That's when

19:37 Speaker 2: a star gets too close to a black hole and

19:40 Speaker 2: gets torn apart by its immense gravitational forces.

19:43 Speaker 1: The technical term for what happens to the star is spaghettification.

19:47 Speaker 1: The star literally gets stretched out like spaghetti by the

19:51 Speaker 1: extreme gravitational gradient.

19:53 Speaker 2: Now, title disruption events aren't uncommon. Astronomers have documented plenty

19:58 Speaker 2: of cases where a star gets sh b's redded without

20:00 Speaker 2: actually crossing the event horizon the point of no return.

20:04 Speaker 2: But what makes this particular event, officially designated at twenty

20:08 Speaker 2: eighteen hyz, so unusual is what happened after the star

20:13 Speaker 2: was destroyed.

20:14 Speaker 1: For a few years, nothing much happened. Then in twenty

20:18 Speaker 1: twenty two, doctor Kendace noticed something strange. The black hole

20:22 Speaker 1: was suddenly emitting a huge amount of energy in radio waves,

20:26 Speaker 1: even though the star had been destroyed years earlier.

20:29 Speaker 2: That peaked her curiosity, and she and her team started

20:33 Speaker 2: monitoring it closely. What they found is absolutely remarkable. The

20:37 Speaker 2: radio emissions have continued to increase exponentially. The black hole

20:41 Speaker 2: is now fifty times brighter in radio waves than it

20:44 Speaker 2: was when they first detected it in twenty nineteen.

20:47 Speaker 1: To put that energy output in perspective, the researchers say

20:50 Speaker 1: it's at least a trillion times more powerful than the

20:53 Speaker 1: fictional Death Star from Star Wars. Some estimates put it

20:57 Speaker 1: closer to one hundred trillion times more powerful.

21:00 Speaker 2: Doctor Kenda said, this is really unusual. I'd be hard

21:04 Speaker 2: pressed to think of anything rising like this over such

21:06 Speaker 2: a long period of time.

21:08 Speaker 1: So what's creating all this energy? Well, the black hole

21:12 Speaker 1: is producing what's called a relativistic jet, a stream of

21:16 Speaker 1: charged particles moving at nearly the speed of light, all

21:20 Speaker 1: shooting out in one direction.

21:22 Speaker 2: The leading theory is that after the star was shredded,

21:25 Speaker 2: it took some time for that stellar material to form

21:28 Speaker 2: an accretion disk around the black hole. Once that disc formed,

21:32 Speaker 2: magnetic fields began channeling some of that material away from

21:36 Speaker 2: the black hole as this incredibly powerful jet.

21:39 Speaker 1: And here's the crazy part. The team has collected enough

21:43 Speaker 1: data now to predict that the jet will keep increasing

21:46 Speaker 1: in brightness before peaking sometime in twenty twenty seven.

21:50 Speaker 2: The energy output is comparable to gamma y bursts, which

21:54 Speaker 2: are generally considered among the most energetic events in the universe.

21:58 Speaker 2: But what makes Jetty mcjet face special is that it's

22:01 Speaker 2: been building for years, rather than being a brief flash.

22:05 Speaker 1: Doctor ken Days made an interesting point about why this

22:08 Speaker 1: might be the first time we're seeing something like this.

22:11 Speaker 1: G noted that securing time on international telescopes is extremely competitive.

22:17 Speaker 1: If you observe an explosion, why would you expect there

22:20 Speaker 1: to be something years after it happened?

22:23 Speaker 2: Right?

22:23 Speaker 1: So?

22:23 Speaker 2: There could be other black holes exhibiting similar behavior. But

22:27 Speaker 2: astronomers haven't been looking for long term effects from tidal

22:30 Speaker 2: disruption events because they had no reason to expect them.

22:34 Speaker 1: Now, doctor Kendays is on the hunt for other examples.

22:37 Speaker 1: She wants to know if Jetti mcjetface is truly unique,

22:41 Speaker 1: or if this is actually a common phenomenon that we've

22:44 Speaker 1: just been missing.

22:45 Speaker 2: The good news for Earth is that we're in no

22:47 Speaker 2: danger from this particular cosmic event. Dettie mcjet face is

22:51 Speaker 2: far enough away that its incredible energy output poses no

22:55 Speaker 2: threat to us. We just get to observe one of

22:57 Speaker 2: the universe's most spectacular show from a safe distance.

23:01 Speaker 1: It's discoveries like this that remind us how much we

23:04 Speaker 1: still have to learn about the universe. Black holes continue

23:08 Speaker 1: to surprise us even after decades of study.

23:11 Speaker 2: Absolutely, and I love that doctor ken Day's gave it

23:14 Speaker 2: such a memorable name. Jeddiemikjetface is going to be in

23:18 Speaker 2: astronomy textbooks for years to come.

23:20 Speaker 1: And that wraps up another incredible day of space and

23:24 Speaker 1: astronomy news. From smartphones going to the Moon to star

23:29 Speaker 1: shredding black holes with unforgettable nicknames, It's been quite a journey.

23:34 Speaker 2: Don't forget to mark your calendars for Mercury viewing over

23:37 Speaker 2: the next two weeks, and keep an eye on the

23:39 Speaker 2: sky in April for what could be a spectacular daytime comment.

23:43 Speaker 1: Thanks for joining us on Astronomy Daily.

23:45 Speaker 2: I'm Anna and I'm Avery. Keep looking up and we'll

23:48 Speaker 2: see you next time.

23:49 Speaker 1: Clear skies, everyone.

23:51 Speaker 2: Sunday Stars. The story is the soul. The story is

24:10 Speaker 2: the soul.