2025-09-01T03:03:39Z

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Have you ever imagined peering 13.3 billion years into the past? An international team of astronomers, spearheaded by the Cosmic Frontier Center at The University of Texas at Austin, has done just that by identifying the most distant black hole ever confirmed—an incredible feat that pushes the boundaries of our understanding of the universe!

Dubbed CAPERS-LRD-z9, this astonishing cosmic discovery was formed just 500 million years after the Big Bang, representing only about 3% of the universe's current age. It’s like shining a flashlight into the darkness of our cosmic infancy, providing scientists with a unique opportunity to study the structure and evolution of one of the universe's most mysterious periods.

In the words of Anthony Taylor, a postdoctoral researcher at the Cosmic Frontier Center and the lead on this groundbreaking discovery, “When looking for black holes, this is about as far back as you can practically go.” Their research, published in the Astrophysical Journal on August 6, marks a significant milestone in astronomical exploration.

While astronomers have previously spotted candidates for distant black holes, this is the first to showcase the distinct spectroscopic signature associated with such celestial giants. As co-author Steven Finkelstein, Director of the Cosmic Frontier Center, pointed out, “They have yet to find the distinct spectroscopic signature associated with a black hole.”

So, how do astronomers identify black holes? They utilize a technique called spectroscopy, splitting light into its various wavelengths to analyze an object’s characteristics. By seeking evidence of fast-moving gas swirling around a black hole, they look for two specific signatures: light from gas moving away from us stretches into red wavelengths while light from gas moving toward us compresses into bluer wavelengths. Taylor explains, “There aren’t many other things that create this signature. And this galaxy has it!”

The research team relied on data from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) and its CAPERS program—an initiative that seeks to study the outermost edges of the universe. Launched in 2021, JWST provides unprecedented views of the cosmos, and CAPERS focuses on confirming and understanding the most distant galaxies.

Initially, CAPERS-LRD-z9 was nothing more than a curious speck in the program’s imagery. However, it emerged as a member of a newly defined class of galaxies called “Little Red Dots.” These galaxies, appearing only in the first 1.5 billion years of the universe, are compact, red, and surprisingly bright—so much so that they resemble nothing seen through the Hubble Space Telescope.

Finkelstein elaborates, “The discovery of Little Red Dots was a major surprise from early JWST data, as they looked nothing like galaxies seen with the Hubble Space Telescope.” Understanding these Little Red Dots may provide key insights into early galactic formation.

The discovery of CAPERS-LRD-z9 is particularly significant because it adds to the compelling evidence that supermassive black holes are responsible for the unexpected brightness seen in these galaxies. Typically, such brightness might suggest a high stellar abundance, but at this early stage, this wouldn't be feasible. Instead, it’s the black holes, in their voracious consumption of surrounding material, that generate this extraordinary luminosity.

As astronomers refine their understanding of Little Red Dots, they’re also eager to uncover what gives these galaxies their distinct red hue. This might be attributed to a thick veil of gas surrounding the black hole, warping its light into redder wavelengths. As Taylor explains, “When we compared this object to those other sources, it was a dead ringer.”

But wait—it gets even more exciting! The black hole within CAPERS-LRD-z9 is estimated to have a mass up to 300 million times that of our sun, accounting for nearly half the total mass of all the stars within its galaxy. That’s a colossal size even for supermassive black holes!

Finding such a gigantic black hole from the universe's infancy offers astronomers crucial insights into black hole evolution. A black hole forming in the universe’s later epochs would have had ample opportunities to grow, but those emerging in the first few hundred million years face a different challenge. As Finkelstein notes, “This adds to growing evidence that early black holes grew much faster than we thought possible.”

With plans for more high-resolution observations using JWST, the team is excited to gather additional data on CAPERS-LRD-z9. This galaxy isn’t just another dot in the sky; it’s a key to unraveling the mysteries of early black hole development. “This is a good test object for us,” says Taylor, “and we are excited to see what we can learn from this unique object.” The cosmos is waiting!