A team of astronomers using NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory and the James Webb Space Telescope has discovered a low-mass supermassive black hole at the center of a galaxy that existed only 1.5 billion years after the Big Bang. This galaxy is located about 12.1 billion light-years from Earth.

Although the black hole was observed “feasting” for a short time, this could provide astronomers with important clues to understand the mechanisms by which supermassive black holes grew so fast in the early universe.

Supermassive black holes are found at the center of most galaxies and, thanks to modern telescopes, can be observed even in the surprisingly early universe. But understanding how these black holes can grow so fast is a big mystery for scientists.

The discovery of a low-mass supermassive black hole consuming matter at breakneck speed just 1.5 billion years after the Big Bang is an important step towards unraveling this mystery. This finding provides new and valuable insights into the growth processes of black holes in the early universe.

Visual Explanations:

Image 1:
This is an artist's concept of the galaxy in which the LID-568 black hole is located. The image resembles a puffy red cloud lightly speckled with stars in shades of blue and white. The central part of the galaxy is bright white, indicating that it is densely packed with stars.

Image 2:
This is an artist's concept of the supermassive black hole called LID-568. It shows a vortex of red and white matter swirling around a round, black shape. In character, the object resembles water swirling around a drain. A bright white jet of particles, resembling a laser beam, shoots upwards from the black hole.

 

Illustrations: NOIRLab/NSF/AURA/J. da Silva/M. Zamani