Cygnus A is seen here as a spectacular high energy x-ray source. But it is actually more famous at the low energy end of the electromagnetic spectrum as one of the brightest celestial radio sources. Central in both pictures, the center of Cygnus A shines brightly while emission extends 300,000 light-years to either side along the same axis. Near light speed jets of atomic particles produced by a massive central black hole are believed to cause the emission. The x-ray image also shows that the jets have cleared out a huge cavity in the surrounding gas.
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