The discovery of the sleeping black hole

An international team of astronomers found it. They are led by astronomer Andrew Newman, of the Carnegie Institution for Science. Other researchers from the Cantabria Institute of Physics (IFCA, CSIC-UC) participate. They managed to measure the mass of a huge black hole located in a very distant galaxy. It originated when the universe was beginning to form. This is the discovery of the sleeping black hole.

These types of supermassive "colossi" are studied because they devour matter and emit enormous amounts of energy. But this case is different for the research staff. The black hole is "asleep." That is, it does not absorb large amounts of matter, explained the University of Cantabria (UC).

unusual event

Thanks to the powerful capabilities of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), the research team was able to calculate its size. They observed how it affects the stars that orbit around it. The results have been published in the journal Science. The model was initially created to explain the Refsdal and Encore supernovae. But finally the model helped us know that there is a massive object in the center of the galaxy.

The discovery of the sleeping black hole is a very rare event. For decades, astronomers have located giant black holes by observing very bright objects called quasars. They are like cosmic beacons powered by very active black holes. However, the object that has been studied belongs to another category that is much more difficult to identify. It is a very quiet and dull black hole.

It is known that the colossus is located in a large galaxy, called MRG-M0138. It formed most of its stars about 13 billion years ago. Today this galaxy barely produces new stars and its central black hole also remains inactive.

star dance

Until a few years ago, measuring the mass of such distant black holes was practically impossible. Now, in this new discovery, the team has analyzed the collective motion of the stars in the galaxy MRG-M0138. And this kind of "star dance" has allowed them to calculate the weight of the black hole. They used data from James Webb, and using the natural phenomenon known as gravitational lensing, which amplifies the light of very distant objects and makes it easier to observe them.

"We can now detect this type of inactive black holes even when the universe was only 10 billion years old," they explain. "The combination of the sharpness provided by the James Webb added to the magnification effect of the gravitational lenses makes it possible," they conclude.