These supermassive black hole jets may pelt Earth with 'ghost particles'

An illustration of a swirling disk around a jet of bright white light.

Blazars are feeding supermassive black holes that sit at the hearts of active galaxies, blasting out enormous jets of radiation and matter. But unlike quasars, the cosmic twin of a blazar, these phenomena are pointed directly at Earth. 

And according to new research, they could actually be pelting our planet with neutrinos — otherwise known as "ghost particles."