Evidence of Gargantuan Gas Geyser in Space Found

Utah researchers have found the first evidence of a space “geyser” that erupts at regular intervals, throwing plumes of hydrogen-rich gas millions of miles into space, creating a fertile environment for the birth of new stars. The space geyser erupts a little less frequently than Old Faithful, however--only about once every 11 million years.

Astronomer J. Ward Moody and his colleagues at Brigham Young University report in The Astronomical Journal that the eruptions are apparently caused by a “middle-sized” black hole, which itself is a new species of stellar object. Previously observed black holes have been either massive or minute, Moody said. The geyser was observed in the galaxy M101, which Moody termed “your average, vanilla generic galaxy.”