All articles tagged with #quasar
Astronomers using the VLBA tracked the quasar TXS 2005+403, 10 billion light-years away, as its radio waves were bent by turbulence in the Milky Way's ionized gas. The study finds persistent, patchy distortions rather than simple blur, providing a new probe of the Galaxy’s interstellar medium and informing models of star formation and cosmic-ray propagation.
Astronomers confirmed a rare, merging quasar pair at z=5.7 (about 1 billion years after the Big Bang) using ALMA, revealing two massive galaxies connected by a tidal bridge; both host galaxies harbor more than 10 billion solar masses and rapid star formation, signaling intense black hole growth during early mergers, which are expected to form a true binary in ~2.1 billion years and may impact the gravitational wave background.
Astronomers tracked galaxy J0218−0036 (about 10 billion light-years away) and found its central supermassive black hole dimmed by about 20x overall and ~50x in the active nucleus from the early 2000s to 2023. Dust obscuration was ruled out, pointing to an intrinsic drop in accretion with the Eddington ratio falling from ~0.4 to ~0.008. The observed e-folding timescale is roughly 2,000 days in the observed frame (~700 days rest frame), far faster than standard models predict, suggesting a change in accretion mode and challenging current black hole growth theories.
Astronomers report that the quasar APM 08279+5255, about 12 billion light-years away, contains roughly 140 trillion times the amount of water in Earth’s oceans, making it the largest known reservoir of water in the cosmos. Water was detected through multiple emission lines, aided by gravitational lensing that magnifies the source. The finding shows water is pervasive even in the early universe and helps illuminate how black holes grow and galaxies form, with lensing suggesting there may be more such water-rich systems hiding in existing catalogs.
Astronomers studying the distant quasar ID830 find a supermassive black hole actively accreting at about 13 times the Eddington limit, powering gigantic radio jets and a bright X-ray corona. The extreme, short-lived super-Eddington phase challenges standard black hole growth models and supports the idea that early-universe SMBHs grew rapidly, shaping their host galaxies through intense outflows and radiation.
Astronomers have discovered the largest and most distant water reservoir in the cosmos within a quasar called APM 08279+5255, containing enough water to fill trillions of Earth oceans, and its brightness is likely amplified by gravitational lensing, providing insights into galaxy and black hole growth in the early universe.
NASA has detected the largest and most distant water reservoir ever found in the universe, located around a quasar 12 billion light-years away, containing 140 trillion times the water on Earth, providing insights into the early universe and the widespread presence of water.
Astronomers have discovered the largest and most distant water reservoir in the cosmos within a quasar over 12 billion light-years away, containing enough water to fill trillions of Earth oceans, with the observation potentially amplified by gravitational lensing, providing insights into galaxy and black hole growth in the early universe.
A new study using the GRAVITY+ instrument on the VLT has revised the mass of the brightest known quasar, J0529, from 10 billion to 800 million solar masses by accounting for gas outflows that skewed previous measurements, providing new insights into black hole growth and galaxy formation in the early universe.
Astronomers using NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory have discovered a distant quasar with a black hole growing faster than the Eddington limit, shedding light on how supermassive black holes formed early in the universe. The black hole, about a billion times the Sun's mass, is accreting material at a rate 2.4 times the typical maximum, which may explain the rapid emergence of massive black holes shortly after the Big Bang.
A study of a distant galaxy suggests supermassive black holes may be smaller than previously thought, challenging existing models of cosmic growth. The black hole at the core of a galaxy over 12 billion light years away is estimated to be about one billion suns, much less than earlier assumptions, due to intense radiation blowing gas away and limiting its growth.
Astronomers have discovered a distant quasar, RACS J0320-35, that is growing at 2.4 times the Eddington limit, consuming the equivalent of 3,000 suns annually, challenging existing theories of black hole growth and potentially reshaping our understanding of the early universe.
NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory has discovered a black hole, about a billion times the Sun's mass, growing at an unprecedented rate in the early universe, which may shed light on how supermassive black holes form quickly after the Big Bang.
Astronomers using gravitational lensing effects discovered radiation from a quasar's core, revealing a hot, magnetic corona around a supermassive black hole in a distant galaxy, with potential for further insights into black hole environments.
An international team of astronomers discovered that millimeter radiation is generated close to the core of a supermassive black hole by using accidental double zoom via microlensing and macrolensing, revealing new insights into the conditions near black holes.