Astrophysical jet

An astrophysical jet is a narrow, collimated outflow of plasma launched by an astronomical object. Jets can extend across vast distances and, in some systems, move at speeds close to light.

Accretion disk: A rotating disk of gas and dust spiraling toward a central object under gravity. Many jets emerge along the rotation axis of the disk feeding their central object.
M87*: The supermassive black hole at the center of the galaxy Messier 87. Its nearby, prominent jet provides a closely studied example of black-hole-powered outflow.
Plasma: An ionized gas containing free charged particles that respond collectively to electromagnetic fields. Astrophysical jets consist mainly of plasma rather than neutral gas.
Radio galaxy: A galaxy whose radio emission is dominated by extended structures powered by a central active nucleus. Its lobes record where jets have carried energy into intergalactic space.
Magnetohydrodynamics: The study of electrically conducting fluids interacting with magnetic fields. Its equations describe how magnetic fields can accelerate and shape jet plasma.
Cygnus X-1: A high-mass X-ray binary containing a black hole and a massive companion star. Its relativistic radio jets show that stellar-mass black holes can launch powerful outflows.
Lorentz factor: A quantity in special relativity that expresses how strongly time, length, and energy transform with speed. It quantifies how relativistic a jet's bulk motion is.
AGN feedback: The influence of energy and matter from an active galactic nucleus on its host galaxy and surroundings. Jets can heat ambient gas and regulate the supply of material available for star formation.
Blandford–Znajek process: A mechanism for extracting rotational energy from a spinning black hole through electromagnetic fields. It offers a route for powering jets from rapidly rotating black holes.
Herbig–Haro object: A luminous nebula formed where jets from a young star collide with surrounding gas. These shock-brightened knots trace jets from forming stars.

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Laboratory studies of space and astrophysical plasmasBroader topic: Laboratory jets test how magnetic fields shape and collimate cosmic outflows.