TECH Signal 409
JWST finds three supermassive black holes in galaxy J0148-4214, two on collision course
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Astronomers using JWST identified three actively feeding supermassive black holes in the distant galaxy J0148-4214, with two just 620 light-years apart and expected to merge within a few hundred million years.
This first-of-its-kind observation provides empirical data for models of black hole and galaxy evolution in the early universe, suggesting merging as a rapid growth mechanism. For computational astrophysics, the measured masses and accretion rates, including one black hole exceeding the Eddington limit, offer concrete constraints for simulation inputs.
Written by elseif from the cluster below · every claim links back to a sourceThe three things worth knowing
Three supermassive black holes (80 million, 0.6 million, and 2 million solar masses) were found in a single galaxy observed 1.2 billion years after the Big Bang.
Two central black holes sit just 620 light-years apart and are expected to merge within a few hundred million years.
The 0.6 million solar mass black hole is accreting above the Eddington limit, challenging basic theories of black hole growth.
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