An object which looked like a supersonic jet but moving at nearly the speed of light was photographed using the CSIRO Australia Telescope Compact Array radio telescope in New South Wales.
The trial of that unidentified object looked like the afterburner flow that is released from a jet plane engine.
"Massive jets like this one have been studied for decades, since the beginning of radio astronomy, but we still don't understand exactly how they are produced or what they're made of," said Dr. Leith Godfrey from the International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research.
The objects are very powerful and massive. They might be about 100 times larger than the Milky Way. They could even stop stars forming in their parent galaxy.
"If we want to understand how galaxies form and grow, we need to understand these jets. They are extremely powerful and are believed to stop stars forming in their parent galaxy, limiting how big the galaxies can grow and effecting how the Universe looks today," Dr. Godfrey said. "If the brighter patches are caused by the same process in astronomical jets as they are in earthly jet engines, then the distance between them can give us important information about the power of the jet and the density of the surrounding space."
Dr. Jim Lovell, a co-author of the research from the University of Tasmania, said this is the first kind researchers have ever seen which also gives them a hint on how this jet would work.
"This particular jet emits a lot of X-rays, which is hard to explain with our current models," Dr. Lovell said. "Our new find is a step forward in understanding how these giant objects emit so much X-Ray radiation, and indirectly, will help us understand how the jet came to be."
