Jets figured in one of the most beautiful images of the year, which was also one of the most popular with the press and the public. The composite X-ray, radio and optical image of the galaxy Centaurus A reveals a galaxy in turmoil.

A broad band of dust and cold gas is bisected at an angle by opposing jets of high-energy particles blasting away from the supermassive black hole in its nucleus. Two large arcs of multimillion-degree gas indicate that a titanic explosion rocked the galaxy about ten million years ago.