In a groundbreaking discovery, astronomers have observed a supermassive black hole at the center of a distant galaxy, named LID-568, devouring matter at an unprecedented rate over 40 times the theoretical Eddington limit. The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) and the Chandra X-ray Observatory were instrumental in capturing this extreme cosmic event, which is reshaping our understanding of black hole growth in the early universe. The findings, now published in Nature Astronomy, offer a closer look into the rapid growth mechanisms of these colossal entities.
“This black hole is having a feast,” said Julia Scharwächter, co-author and astronomer, emphasizing that this scenario demonstrates a “fast-feeding mechanism above the Eddington limit.” This black hole’s insatiable hunger presents a fresh perspective on how supermassive black holes could form and evolve shortly after the Big Bang, about 1.5 billion years ago.
The Eddington limit is the threshold at which the outward pressure of a black hole’s radiation balances its inward gravitational pull. Surpassing this limit was previously thought to be improbable. However, this black hole is consuming at a rate suggesting that supermassive black holes could grow to immense sizes in a relatively brief period by defying this limit, challenging long-standing models.
Using JWST’s advanced infrared capabilities, astronomers detected unusual outflows of gas surrounding LID-568, something previously unseen and essential for the discovery. “Owing to its faint nature, the detection of LID-568 would be impossible without JWST,” noted Hyewon Suh from the International Gemini Observatory, who led the study.
Existing theories proposed that black holes originate from “light seeds” (formed by the collapse of early stars) or “heavy seeds” (from direct gas cloud collapse). The extreme case of LID-568, however, suggests that early supermassive black holes may grow faster than expected, a process possibly driven by mechanisms that allow them to surpass the Eddington limit.
The team behind this discovery is now planning follow-up studies with JWST to uncover more insights into the early universe’s most massive black holes and the forces fueling their growth. This discovery brings us closer to understanding the enigmatic and violent evolution of black holes that shaped the cosmos as we know it today.
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