A research team, led by Anthony Taylor — a postdoctoral fellow at the Cosmic Frontier Center at the University of Texas at Austin — used spectroscopy to confirm the presence of a black hole in the galaxy CAPERS-LRD-z9. The galaxy belongs to a class of galaxies dubbed “Little Red Dots” (LRDs).

They are so called due to their intensely bright red appearance in telescope images. These early galaxies have been found only within the universe’s first 1.5 billion years. Ordinarily, the intense brightness of this class of galaxies would point to the presence of numerous stars. However, given the galaxy’s age, it is unlikely enough stars could have formed to account for that glow, leaving one plausible explanation — black holes. These black holes suck in gas and dust, which spiral at thousands of kilometers per second. The material is compressed and heated to extreme temperatures, producing intense radiation.

What is most outstanding about the newly discovered black hole in the CAPERS-LRD-Z9 galaxy is its size and age. It is up to 1.3 trillion times more massive than the Earth, equivalent to about half of CAPERS-LRD-Z9’s stellar mass. It is also an ancient behemoth, as it is believed to have been formed around 13.3 billion years ago, just 500 million years after the Universe’s creation.

This observation of CAPERS-LRD-Z9 and its behemoth black hole was made using NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope, which has been studying every phase of our universe since its launch in December 2021.

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Chibuike Okpara – Tech Writer – 115 articles published on Notebookcheck since 2024

I have always been fascinated by technology and digital devices my entire life and even got addicted to it. I have always marveled at the intricacy of even the simplest digital devices and systems around us. I have been writing and publishing articles online for about 6 years now, just about a year ago, I found myself lost in the marvel of smartphones and laptops we have in our hands every day. I developed a passion for learning about new devices and technologies that come with them and at some point, I asked myself, “Why not get into writing tech articles?” It is useless to say I followed up the idea — it is evident. I am an open-minded individual who derives an infinite amount of joy from researching and discovering new information, I believe there is so much to learn and such a short life to live, so I put my time to good use — learning new things. I am a ‘bookworm’ of the internet and digital devices. When I am not writing, you will find me on my devices still, I do explore and admire the beauty of nature and creatures. I am a fast learner and quickly adapt to changes, always looking forward to new adventures.