PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Unlocking the secrets of the first quasars: how they defy the laws of physics to grow

Unlocking the secrets of the first quasars:  how they defy the laws of physics to grow
2024-11-20
(Press-News.org)

In the article published today in the Astronomy & Astrophysics journal, new evidence suggests how supermassive black holes, with masses of several billion times that of our Sun, formed so rapidly in less than a billion years after the Big Bang. The study, led by researchers of the National Institute for Astrophysics (INAF), analyses a sample of 21 quasars, among the most distant ever discovered, observed in the X-rays band by the XMM-Newton and Chandra space telescopes. The results suggest that the supermassive black holes at the centre of these titanic quasars, the first formed during the cosmic dawn, may have reached their extraordinary masses through very rapid and intense accretion, thus providing a plausible explanation for their existence in the early stages of the Universe.

Quasars are active galaxies powered by the central supermassive black holes (known as active galactic nuclei), which emit an enormous amount of energy as they attract matter. They are extremely luminous and distant from us. In particular, the quasars examined in this study are among the most distant objects ever observed, dating back to a time when the Universe was less than a billion years old.

In this work, the analysis of X-ray emissions from these objects revealed an entirely unexpected behaviour of the supermassive black holes at their centres: a connection emerged between the shape of the X-ray emission and the speed of the winds of matter ejected by the quasars. This relationship links the wind speed, which can reach thousands of kilometres per second, to the temperature of the gas in the corona, the region that emits X-rays closest to the black hole. Thus, the corona turned out to be connected to the powerful accretion mechanisms of the black hole itself. Quasars with low-energy X-ray emission, and thus a lower temperature in the corona, show faster winds. This indicates a highly rapid growth phase that exceeds a physical limit for the accretion of matter called the Eddington limit, which is why this phase is called "super-Eddington." Conversely, quasars with higher-energy X-ray emissions tend to exhibit slower winds.

"Our work suggests that the supermassive black holes at the centre of the first quasars formed within the first billion years of the Universe's life may have actually increased their mass very rapidly, challenging the limits of physics," says Alessia Tortosa, lead author of the study and researcher at INAF in Rome. "The discovery of this connection between X-ray emission and winds is crucial for understanding how such large black holes could have formed in such a short time, thus providing a concrete clue to solve one of the greatest mysteries of modern astrophysics."

The result was achieved mainly by analysing data collected with the XMM-Newton space telescope of the European Space Agency (ESA), which allowed for approximately 700 hours of observations of the quasars. Most of the data, collected between 2021 and 2023 as part of the Multi-Year XMM-Newton Heritage Programme, under the direction of Luca Zappacosta, a researcher at INAF in Rome, is part of the HYPERION project, which aims at studying hyperluminous quasars during the cosmic dawn of the Universe. The extensive observation campaign was led by a team of Italian scientists and received crucial support from INAF, which funded the program, thereby supporting cutting-edge research on the evolutionary dynamics of the early structures of the Universe.

"In the HYPERION program, we focused on two key factors: on one hand, the careful selection of quasars to observe, choosing the titans, meaning those that had accumulated as much mass as possible, and on the other hand, the in-depth study of their properties in X-rays, something never attempted before on such a large number of objects from the cosmic dawn," says Luca Zappacosta, a researcher at INAF in Rome. We hit the jackpot! The results we're getting are genuinely unexpected, and they all point to a super-Eddington growth mechanism of the black holes."

This study provides important insights for future X-ray missions, such as ATHENA (ESA), AXIS, and Lynx (NASA), which are scheduled for launch between 2030 and 2040. In fact, the results obtained will be useful for refining the next-generation observational instruments and for defining better strategies for investigating black holes and active galactic nuclei in X-rays at more distant cosmic epochs. These are key elements for understanding the formation of the first galactic structures in the primordial Universe.

Related journal article: “HYPERION. Shedding light on the first luminous quasars: A correlation between UV disc winds and X-ray continuum”, di Tortosa A. et al. 2024, Astronomy & Astrophysics.

END


[Attachments] See images for this press release:
Unlocking the secrets of the first quasars:  how they defy the laws of physics to grow

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Study reveals importance of student-teacher relationships in early childhood education

2024-11-20
Are student-teacher relationships critical to early childhood education? With roughly 33 million students enrolled in public elementary school education throughout the United States, (National Center for Education Statistics, 2022), there is an acute need to more comprehensively understand the ways in which children’s development can be promoted through student-teacher relationships.   In a new Child Development study, researchers at The Ohio State University and University of Pennsylvania explored the significance of student-teacher relationships between kindergarten and third grade. Using the Early Childhood ...

Do abortion policy changes affect young women’s mental health?

2024-11-20
After the June 2022 US Supreme Court ruling that allowed states to ban abortion, women of childbearing age in states where abortion became illegal reported increased rates of anxiety. That’s according to a new study published in Contemporary Economic Policy. The study relied on data from the Household Pulse Survey, a monthly online survey by the United States Census Bureau in collaboration with other federal agencies that gathers a vast array of data on representative samples of American adults from all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Investigators analyzed information on ...

Can sown wildflowers compensate for cities’ lack of natural meadows to support pollinating insects?

2024-11-20
In a study published in Ecological Entomology, a journal from the Royal Entomological Society, researchers assessed whether a shortage of natural meadows in urban spaces for pollinating insects might be addressed by creating meadows where wildflowers are planted or sown among grasses. The research, which was conducted in Warsaw, Poland, showed no difference in the composition of insect-pollinated plants between these two meadow types. There was also no difference between the meadow types concerning the species richness of butterflies, bees, and hoverflies. The number of butterflies ...

Is therapeutic hypothermia an effective treatment for hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy, a type of neurological dysfunction in newborns?

2024-11-20
Hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) is one of the leading causes of newborn mortality and morbidity worldwide, and lowering the baby’s body temperature—called therapeutic hypothermia—is often used as a treatment. A review in Developmental Medicine and Child Neurology highlights additional therapies for HIE that are being tested with and without concomitant therapeutic hypothermia. Neonatal HIE is characterized by neurological dysfunction resulting from inadequate oxygen and blood flow to the brain near the time of birth. Therapeutic hypothermia is an established therapy in ...

Scientists discover the molecular composition of potentially deadly venomous fish

2024-11-20
New research in FEBS Open Bio reveals insights into the venom of two of the most venomous fish species on earth: the estuarine stonefish (Synanceia horrida) and the reef stonefish (Synanceia verrucosa), which are typically found in the warm and shallow regions of the Indo-Pacific region, the Persian Gulf, and the Red Sea. Through multiple analytical techniques, investigators discovered the presence of three neurotransmitters new to stonefish venom, namely gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), choline, and 0-acetylcholine. Although these molecules ...

What are the belowground responses to long-term soil warming among different types of trees?

2024-11-20
Through a 20-year experiment, investigators have shown how different trees adjust their strategies for acquiring nutrients through their roots as soil warms with climate change. The research, which is published in Global Change Biology, included trees that associate with different fungi that help roots absorb nutrients. Measurements showed that when exposed to warmer soils, oak trees associated with ectomycorrhizal fungi reduce interactions with soil microbes while increasing fine root exploration, whereas maple trees that associate with arbuscular mycorrhizal largely maintain ...

Do area-wide social and environmental factors affect individuals’ risk of cognitive impairment?

2024-11-20
Research published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society has identified several community-level factors that may increase people’s risk of experiencing cognitive impairment. In the study of 2,830 dementia-free US individuals aged 65+ years, 23.2% of participants were categorized as having mild cognitive impairment. People who lived in areas with higher neighborhood disadvantage, higher air pollution, higher homicide rate, and less greenspace had elevated odds of having mild cognitive impairment. Completing schooling in a Southern US state was also associated with a greater likelihood of ...

UCLA professor Helen Lavretsky reshapes brain health through integrative medicine research

UCLA professor Helen Lavretsky reshapes brain health through integrative medicine research
2024-11-20
LOS ANGELES, California, USA, 20 November 2024 – In a comprehensive Genomic Press Interview, Professor Helen Lavretsky reveals how her pioneering work in integrative psychiatry is transforming approaches to mental health and aging. The interview, featured in the peer-reviewed medical research journal Brain Medicine (doi: 10.61373/bm024k.0130), offers unique insights into the evolution of integrative medicine from scientific skepticism to evidence-based acceptance. Professor Lavretsky, current President of the American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry (2022-25), has successfully merged conventional ...

Astronauts found to process some tasks slower in space, but no signs of permanent cognitive decline

2024-11-20
A stay in space exerts extreme pressures on the human body. Astronauts’ bodies and brains are impacted by radiation, altered gravity, challenging working conditions, and sleep loss – all of which could compromise cognitive functioning. At the same time, they are required to perform complex tasks, and minor mistakes can have devastating consequences. Little is known, however, about whether astronauts’ cognitive performance changes while in space. Now, working with 25 astronauts who spent an average of six month on the International Space Station (ISS), researchers in the US have examined changes in a wide range of cognitive performance domains. ...

Larger pay increases and better benefits could support teacher retention

2024-11-20
Larger pay increases and better benefits could help keep K-12 teachers in the teacher workforce, finds a new, nationally representative RAND survey.     U.S. teachers reported modest pay increases between the 2022-2023 and 2023-2024 school years, only $2,000 on average and well below their desired increase of $16,000. Black teachers and teachers in states where collective bargaining is prohibited reported they received the smallest pay increases.     “Teachers who received larger pay increases also said they were less likely to intend to leave the profession,” ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Transforming treatment outcomes for people with OCD

Damage from smoke and respiratory viruses mitigated in mice via a common signaling pathway

New software tool could help better understand childhood cancer

Healthy lifestyle linked to lower diverticulitis risk, irrespective of genetic susceptibility

Women 65+ still at heightened risk of cervical cancer caused by HPV

‘Inflammatory’ diet during pregnancy may raise child’s diabetes type 1 risk

Effective therapies needed to halt rise in eco-anxiety, says psychology professor

Nature-friendly farming boosts biodiversity and yields but may require new subsidies

Against the odds: Endometriosis linked to four times higher pregnancy rates than other causes of infertility, new study reveals

Microplastics discovered in human reproductive fluids, new study reveals

Family ties and firm performance: How cousin marriage traditions shape informal businesses in Africa

Novel flu vaccine adjuvant improves protection against influenza viruses, study finds

Manipulation of light at the nanoscale helps advance biosensing

New mechanism discovered in ovarian cancer peritoneal metastasis: YWHAB restriction drives stemness and chemoresistance

New study links blood metabolites and immune cells to increased risk of urolithiasis

Pyruvate identified as a promising therapeutic agent for ulcerative colitis by targeting cytosolic phospholipase A2

New insights into the clinical impact of IKBKG mutations: Understanding the mechanisms behind rare immunodeficiency syndromes

Displays, imaging and sensing: New blue fluorophore breaks efficiency records in both solids and solutions

Sugar, the hidden thermostat in plants

Personality can explain why some CEOs earn higher salaries

This puzzle game shows kids how they’re smarter than AI

Study suggests remembrances of dead played role in rise of architecture in Andean region

Brain stimulation can boost math learning in people with weaker neural connections

Inhibiting enzyme could halt cell death in Parkinson’s disease, study finds

Neurotechnology reverses biological disadvantage in maths learning

UNDER EMBARGO: Neurotechnology reverses biological disadvantage in maths learning

Scientists target ‘molecular machine’ in the war against antimicrobial resistance

Extending classical CNOP method for deep-learning atmospheric and oceanic forecasting

Aston University research: Parents should encourage structure and independence around food to support children’s healthy eating

Thunderstorms are a major driver of tree death in tropical forests

[Press-News.org] Unlocking the secrets of the first quasars: how they defy the laws of physics to grow