Scientists have observed a unique black hole that has huge C-ray rings around it. With the help of Chandra X-ray Observatory and the Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory, astronomers have been observing how this phenomenon occurred and what it can reveal about black holes and cosmic dust.

The black hole belongs to a binary system known as V404 Cygni, which means the black hole has a companion star from which it is transferring material. As the black hole’s gravity pulls gas away from the star, the material forms a disk surrounding the black hole. This disk glows in the X-ray wavelength, which means the system is an X-ray binary type.

Observing 8 X-ray rings

But this particular system doesn’t only pack a disk of material around it but also gives away periodic bursts of X-rays. These bursts bounce off the clouds of dust which are placed between there and our planet, forming rings known as light echoes, in a similar way to how sound waves bounce off a wall.

To study the phenomenon, scientists collected data in both X-ray and visible light wavelengths, merging the two images. It shows concentric rings, with some gaps due to the limits of Chandra’s field of view. The scientists managed to study a total of eight rings.

Discovery can reveal many secrets

The new discovery is attracting more attention not just because it can tell us more about this black hole, but also about the dust clouds which were involved, and bout the space that lies between our planet and the V404 Cygni.

 “The rings tell astronomers not only about the black hole’s behavior but also about the landscape between V404 Cygni and Earth,” Chandra scientists wrote. “For example, the diameter of the rings in X-rays reveals the distances to the intervening dust clouds the light ricocheted off. If the cloud is closer to Earth, the ring appears to be larger, and vice versa. The light echoes appear as narrow rings rather than wide rings or haloes because the X-ray burst lasted only a relatively short period of time. “