Astronomers have recently mapped the shapes of massive gas spins in the host galaxy IRAS 13224-3809, found in the Centaurus constellation some 1 billion light-years from Earth. Researchers continuously observed a fluctuating black hole from the XMM-Newton X-ray observatory to map the gas spins. This constantly charged spin produces radiation, which can be detected by space telescopes as X-rays collide and bounce off particles of gas in the vicinity of the maelstrom. The researchers are considering using the same method to probe the black hole physics of many other distant galaxies.