What is special about Cygnus X-1?

Abstract

The X-ray evidence from several experiments is reviewed, with special emphasis on those characteristics which appear to distinguish Cygnus X-1 from other compact X-ray emitting objects. Data are examined within the context of a model in which millisecond bursts are superposed upon shot-noise fluctuations arising from events of durations on the order of a second. Possible spectral-temporal correlations are investigated which provide additional evidence that Cygnus X-1 is very likely a black hole