The MS0735.6+7421 galaxy has given up some of the strongest evidence for jets powered by spinning black holes (Illustration: NASA / ESA / CXC / STSCI / NRAO)

YOU wouldn’t want to be nearby when a spinning black hole lets rip. It now seems they can store and unleash the energy of billions of supernovae, with potentially devastating consequences for their host galaxies.

Many of the supermassive black holes that lurk at the centre of galaxies fire out powerful plasma jets that extend for millions of light years. Though the details of how these jets are produced remain murky, …