Astronomers have discovered a microblazar named IRAS 18293-0941 located 12,000 light-years away in the Milky Way, featuring a black hole jet pointed directly at Earth. Disclosed by researchers on September 22, 2026, and pre-published on arXiv on September 1, 2026, the system consists of a black hole and a companion star orbiting every 11.38 days. While one jet rushes toward Earth at three-quarters the speed of light, the opposite jet illuminates a molecular cloud, confirming a 30-year-old astrophysical theory.
The Discovery of Microblazar IRAS 18293-0941
Supermassive black holes frequently power cosmic jets across the universe, but astronomers have now identified a counterpart inside our own galaxy. Located 12,000 light-years away, IRAS 18293-0941 features a black hole feeding on material stripped from a companion star. Josep Martí from the University of Jaén, lead author of the study accepted by the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics, noted that the system was hidden behind dense cosmic dust and largely forgotten after being catalogued decades ago.
How Astronomers Detected a High-Speed Jet Pointed at Earth
Researchers spotted the system after noticing slight flickering from the companion star. Radio telescopes subsequently revealed a jet directed toward Earth. Benito Marcote of the Joint Institute for VLBI ERIC (JIVE) in The Netherlands explained that combining European VLBI Network radio data with Gaia satellite astrometry proved the jet belongs to the local stellar system. The secondary jet, pointing away from Earth, carves out a bubble in a gas cloud and heats dust on the far wall.
Did you know? The jet in IRAS 18293-0941 moves at 75 percent the speed of light and strikes a molecular cloud tens of parsecs away, generating high-energy gamma rays.
Confirming a Decades-Old Astrophysical Theory
While distant blazars powered by supermassive black holes are well documented, scientists spent 30 years theorizing the existence of microblazars driven by stellar companions. Pedro Luque-Escamilla from the University of Jaén highlighted the system’s mechanics, noting that the jet acts as the accelerator engine while the distant cloud acts as the target. The team plans to observe the system further to track jet evolution and particle interactions.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Earth in any danger from the microblazar jet?
No, scientists confirm there is nothing to fear from the jet.
How fast are the black hole jets moving?
The jets rush outward at three-quarters the speed of light.
How often does the companion star orbit the black hole?
The companion star orbits the black hole every 11.38 days.
What causes the opposite jet to become visible?
The opposite-facing jet blasts through a gas and dust cloud, heating the far wall and causing it to glow.
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