--- title: Black Holes Emit ‘Fierce Winds’ That Inhibit New Stars description: Researchers say that new data indicate that a black hole emits powerful winds that regulate the creation of new stars around it. canonical: https://time.com/3715653/black-hole-winds-nasa-esa/ author: Noah Rayman article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-02-19T20:21:34.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:59:51.763Z article:section: Science og:title: Black Holes Emit ‘Fierce Winds’ That Inhibit New Stars og:description: Researchers say that new data indicate that a black hole emits powerful winds that regulate the creation of new stars around it. og:url: https://time.com/3715653/black-hole-winds-nasa-esa/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltfdce1af08bcd3d8c/69878020a988ca63fe6ac8f7/nasa-black-hole-winds.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2560 og:image:height: 1440 og:image:alt: Supermassive black holes at the cores of galaxies blast out radiation and ultra-fast winds, as illustrated in this artist's conception. og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Black Holes Emit ‘Fierce Winds’ That Inhibit New Stars twitter:description: Researchers say that new data indicate that a black hole emits powerful winds that regulate the creation of new stars around it. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltfdce1af08bcd3d8c/69878020a988ca63fe6ac8f7/nasa-black-hole-winds.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Black Hole Emits ‘Fierce Winds’ That Prevent New Stars Forming > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME Future Proof: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition Future Proof is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. Making sense of the climate and energy economy. Future Proof examines the forces transforming energy and climate, and what those changes mean for business, technology, policy and the global economy. Senior correspondent Justin Worland goes beyond traditional climate coverage to connect the energy transition to the bigger decisions reshaping companies, markets and society. 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Future Proof is TIME's weekly climate and energy newsletter, written by senior correspondent Justin Worland. It connects the energy transition to the decisions reshaping business, technology, policy and markets. #### Where can I follow the energy transition as a business story? Future Proof covers climate and energy as an economic and business story rather than only an environmental one. It publishes every Friday and is free at time.com/newsletters. #### Who writes Future Proof? Justin Worland, a senior correspondent at TIME and an award-winning climate journalist, writes Future Proof. #### Is Future Proof free? Yes. Future Proof is free at time.com/newsletters. ## Video: TIME Explains: The Most Distant Galaxy in the Universe [Watch (HLS stream): TIME Explains: The Most Distant Galaxy in the Universe](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/9OCmo1zS.m3u8) (1:42)  _Published 2013-10-28. What does it mean for a galaxy to be the most distant galaxy disovered? The numbers are staggering—here's what you need to know_  by [Noah Rayman](https://time.com/author/noah-rayman/)  ## Noah Rayman Feb 19, 2015 8:21 PM UTC  Supermassive black holes at the cores of galaxies blast out radiation and ultra-fast winds, as illustrated in this artist's conception. Supermassive black holes at the cores of galaxies blast out radiation and ultra-fast winds, as illustrated in this artist's conception. JPL-Caltech/NASA  by [Noah Rayman](https://time.com/author/noah-rayman/)  ## Noah Rayman Feb 19, 2015 8:21 PM UTC Researchers say that new data from a black hole 2 billion light years away indicate that it emits powerful winds in all directions that help to regulate its growth as well as the growth of the galaxy around it. The research, based on observations from a NASA and a European Space Agency space telescope, was published in the latest issue of the [journal Science](http://www.sciencemag.org/content/347/6224/860). NASA [released](http://www.nasa.gov/press/2015/february/nasa-esa-telescopes-give-shape-to-furious-black-hole-winds/#.VOY3vbDF9fc) an artist’s conception of the radiation and winds emitted by a black hole. The study found that the black hole, labelled PDS 456, sustains winds blowing up to a third the speed of light that carry more energy per second than the amount emitted by a trillion suns. These winds, produced as the black hole sucks in matter, push gas outward and thereby help restrict both the growth of the black hole and the formation of stars in the galaxy. ## Transcript [ MUSIC ] What does it mean for a galaxy to be the most distant confirmed galaxy in the universe? The numbers are staggering. Here's what you need to know. [ NOISE ] [ MUSIC ] It's official name is Zagnd5296, but it's better known as the most distant galaxy ever discovered. A light year is the distance light travels in on e year, which comes out to 9. 4605284 times ten to the 15 meters. In simpler terms, it's about 9. 5 trillion kilometers, or about 6 trillion miles. Multiply that by 30 billion. And that's how far away ZAGND5296 is, and what exactly is the galaxy? It's a collection of stars that's part of the structure of the universe. The incredible distance between us and that farthest away galaxy means that we are just now seeing what it was like 13 billion years ago. Because that's how long it took for the light from the galaxy to reach telescope's sensors. It's so far away, that it required two of the world's most powerful telescopes for astronomers to make observations. The Hubble Space Telescope, and the Keck Telescope. We can treat this galaxy like a fossil, something that gives us a glimpse of the evolution of galaxies. It's a hint of what the universe was like at the young age of 700 million years old, a mere five percent of it's current age which is estimated to be 13. 8 billion years. Some notable things about this particular galaxy include a tiray of producing stars, and a shroud of hydrogen gas surrounding it, which scientists haven't found in the modern universe. We'll learn more about this galaxy with the introduction of the next generation James Webb space telescope in 2018, which will have more than 17 times the light gathering power of the Hubble. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3715653/black-hole-winds-nasa-esa/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3715653/black-hole-winds-nasa-esa/"},"headline":"Black Hole Emits ‘Fierce Winds’ That Prevent New Stars Forming","datePublished":"2015-02-19T20:21:34.000Z","dateModified":"2026-08-04T07:59:51.763Z","description":"Shouldn't have eaten that entire galaxy","url":"https://time.com/3715653/black-hole-winds-nasa-esa/","keywords":["Space","NASA"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltfdce1af08bcd3d8c/69878020a988ca63fe6ac8f7/nasa-black-hole-winds.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Noah Rayman","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/noah-rayman/"}],"articleSection":"Science","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltfdce1af08bcd3d8c/69878020a988ca63fe6ac8f7/nasa-black-hole-winds.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Supermassive black holes at the cores of galaxies blast out radiation and ultra-fast winds, as illustrated in this artist's conception.","caption":"Supermassive black holes at the cores of galaxies blast out radiation and ultra-fast winds, as illustrated in this artist's conception.","creditText":"JPL-Caltech/NASA","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/science/","name":"Science"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/space/","name":"Space"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3715653/black-hole-winds-nasa-esa/","name":"Black Hole Emits ‘Fierce Winds’ That Prevent New Stars Forming"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"TIME Explains: The Most Distant Galaxy in the Universe","description":"What does it mean for a galaxy to be the most distant galaxy disovered? 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