Early-Universe Black Hole LID-568 Consumes Matter at Record Rate

Key Takeaways
Black Hole Name	LID-568, a low-mass black hole discovered in a galaxy 1.5 billion years post-Big Bang.
Growth Rate	Accreting matter at over 40 times its theoretical Eddington limit.
Instruments Used	JWST’s NIRSpec and Chandra X-ray Observatory, allowing detection of faint emissions and X-rays.
Significance	Offers insights into how supermassive black holes formed quickly in the early universe.

Astronomers have discovered a black hole in the early universe that is consuming matter at a rate over 40 times its theoretical limit. This low-mass supermassive black hole, named LID-568, exists in a galaxy observed just 1.5 billion years after the Big Bang. The discovery offers new insights into the mechanisms by which supermassive black holes rapidly grew in the early universe.

Uncovering LID-568's Extreme Growth Rate

Using NASA's James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) and the Chandra X-ray Observatory, a team led by astronomer Hyewon Suh discovered LID-568 within a sample of galaxies from the COSMOS legacy survey. These galaxies were bright in the X-ray spectrum but invisible in the optical spectrum, detectable only through JWST's infrared sensitivity.

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The Eddington Limit and What It Means for Black Hole Growth

Typically, a black hole’s growth rate is limited by the Eddington limit, the balance between gravitational forces pulling matter in and radiation pushing it out. LID-568’s extreme growth, 40 times above this limit, challenges existing theories and suggests rapid mass growth can occur in single episodes of intense feeding.

Unexpected Findings: Gas Outflows and Black Hole 'Feasting'

The team observed powerful outflows of gas surrounding LID-568, indicating that a significant portion of its mass was accumulated during a short-lived, high-speed growth episode. These outflows may act as a 'release valve' for excess energy, stabilizing the black hole despite its extreme rate of growth.

What This Means for Our Understanding of Supermassive Black Holes

This discovery offers an unprecedented opportunity to study the rapid growth mechanisms of black holes and provides evidence that black holes in the early universe could grow at rates far exceeding previously assumed limits. It supports theories that supermassive black holes could develop from smaller "seed" black holes, whether from the death of massive stars or direct gas cloud collapse.

Further observations with JWST are planned to understand the mechanics of LID-568’s growth and its impact on our knowledge of early-universe black holes.

Source: Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy