Researchers have identified the most distant dormant black hole known, dating back to the universe’s early history. Astronomers have long relied on brilliant quasars, supermassive black holes actively feeding on surrounding matter, to study the early universe. Yet these luminous objects reveal only part of the story. Now, researchers have detected the most distant dormant [...]

A decades-long search has revealed signs of a subtle outflow from the Milky Way’s central black hole. Something has been missing from the Milky Way’s central black hole. For more than half a century, astronomers searched for a telltale wind that theory said must be blowing from Sagittarius A* (Sgr A*), the supermassive black hole [...]

A new cosmic bounce model suggests that remnants from a pre-Big Bang Universe may still exist today. What if some of the Universe’s oldest objects are actually older than the Big Bang itself? A new study from the University of Portsmouth suggests that ancient black holes may have survived from a time before the Universe [...]

A new detector-based method clarifies how gravitational waves should be measured in an evolving universe. Imagine trying to measure a ripple on the surface of a pond while the pond itself is slowly changing shape. That is the challenge scientists face when they study gravitational waves not as isolated signals from colliding black holes, but [...]

A new gravitational-wave catalogue reports 161 additional black hole mergers, bringing the total to 390 detections. Scientists at the University of Glasgow’s Institute for Gravitational Research are celebrating the release of a major new collection of gravitational wave discoveries, a milestone that highlights the rapid growth of gravitational astronomy. The latest Gravitational Wave Transient…

A new mathematical breakthrough sheds light on how tiny black holes could emerge from critical states of spacetime. Black holes are often portrayed as cosmic giants, swallowing stars and shaping entire galaxies. But some of the most intriguing black holes predicted by physics could be far smaller than an atom. For decades, scientists have known [...]

Scientists believe an unusual LIGO detection may be evidence of a primordial black hole, potentially linking these long-theorized objects to the mystery of dark matter. Scientists at the University of Miami believe they may be closing in on evidence for one of the most elusive objects in the universe: primordial black holes. While definitive proof [...]

Magnetic fields may be the hidden force bringing both newborn stars and giant black holes together. New computer simulations suggest that magnetic fields play a crucial role in helping pairs of young stars form. The findings could explain why binary star systems are so common throughout the Milky Way and may even offer clues about [...]

A distant quasar has revealed one of the most extreme ultraviolet outflows ever observed, providing new clues about the powerful interactions between supermassive black holes and their host galaxies. A supermassive black hole more than a billion times the mass of the Sun is blasting gas through space at such extraordinary speeds that astronomers are [...]

Researchers discovered a closely orbiting pair of supermassive black holes in Markarian 501 by tracking two jets of particles. The binary system could merge within 100 years and may produce detectable gravitational waves. Current evidence indicates that nearly every large galaxy contains a supermassive black hole at its center, with a mass ranging from millions [...]

A new theoretical study suggests that black holes may never completely disappear, potentially offering a way to resolve the long-standing black hole information paradox. One of the biggest unsolved problems in modern physics, known as the “black hole information paradox,” may finally have a compelling solution. The proposed answer could also help explain where the [...]

Using the joint NASA/European Space Agency/Canadian Space Agency James Webb Space Telescope, an international team…

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Scientists have discovered that ultraheavy atomic nuclei could explain some of the highest-energy cosmic rays ever observed. The particles may come from extreme events such as neutron-star mergers and collapsing massive stars. Scientists may have uncovered a new clue behind the origin of the most energetic particles ever detected in the universe. Ultrahigh-energy cosmic rays [...]

New observations and simulations by a research team led by MPE show that a massive binary star near the center of our Galaxy is creating a series of enigmatic gas clouds, compact clumps that help feed the supermassive black hole Sagittarius A*. The center of the Milky Way is one of the most crowded and [...]

The biggest black holes in the Universe may be built through chains of violent mergers deep inside crowded star clusters. The largest black holes ever detected through gravitational waves may not have formed directly from collapsing stars, according to new research led by Cardiff University. Instead, scientists say these enormous objects were likely built through [...]

An unprecedented neutrino detection in the Mediterranean has pushed the boundaries of high-energy astrophysics, raising new questions about the most extreme processes in the universe. Three years ago, scientists detected an “ultra-energetic” cosmic neutrino in the Mediterranean Sea, the most energetic ever recorded. The discovery drew global attention from researchers, the media, and the public.…

New observations reveal how black hole jets behave under pressure, offering a crucial benchmark for understanding their role in cosmic evolution. A new study led by Curtin University has used a global network of radio telescopes to capture images that reveal the enormous energy carried by jets from black holes. The results support long-standing ideas [...]

A new study proposes an innovative way to uncover elusive supermassive black hole binaries by tracking subtle, repeating flashes of starlight. Researchers from Oxford University and the Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics (Albert Einstein Institute) have outlined a new way to uncover one of the universe’s most elusive phenomena: tightly bound pairs of supermassive [...]

NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope reveals new clues about a mysterious cosmic explosion that defies expectations. Researchers are investigating an unusual event in deep space that has left scientists searching for answers. The explosion lasted far longer than similar events ever recorded, making it one of the strangest high-energy phenomena observed in decades. NASA recently [...]

A subtle gravitational-wave “hum” from merging black holes may help settle the cosmic fight over how fast the universe is expanding. Astronomers have understood for many decades that the universe is expanding. To calculate how quickly it is stretching today, researchers measure a value called the Hubble constant. Different techniques are used to determine this [...]

A newly detected X-ray transient may reveal the first direct evidence of an intermediate-mass black hole consuming a white dwarf. A newly observed cosmic outburst is giving astronomers a rare glimpse into some of the most extreme processes in the universe. On July 2, 2025, the China-led Einstein Probe (EP) space telescope identified an extraordinarily [...]

A restarted black hole in J1007+3540 reveals how episodic jet activity and cluster pressure sculpt giant radio galaxies. Astronomers have captured one of the clearest views yet of a black hole returning to life, in a vast radio galaxy where activity stretches nearly one million light-years across space. The phenomenon has been compared to a [...]

Astronomers have witnessed a rare cosmic event: a massive star that didn’t explode in a spectacular supernova, but instead quietly collapsed into a black hole. Astronomers have directly observed a dying massive star that did not explode in a supernova. Instead, it collapsed inward, forming a black hole. The event provides the most complete set [...]

What if the Milky Way’s central “black hole” isn’t a black hole at all? A new model proposes that an ultra-dense dark matter core could mimic its gravitational pull. Some astronomers think the Milky Way’s center could be hiding something stranger than a supermassive black hole. In a new study, researchers argue that the object [...]

Scientists say an ultra-powerful neutrino once thought impossible may be explained by an exotic black hole model involving a so-called “dark charge.” In 2023, a neutrino slammed into Earth carrying more energy than any particle ever observed. The detection stunned physicists. The particle’s energy was measured roughly 100,000 times greater than the most powerful collisions [...]

The sharpest black hole collision ever detected just gave Einstein another win—and raised hopes that the next one might rewrite gravity. For scientists who follow gravitational waves as they arrive from deep space, GW250114 stands out as an extraordinary event. It is the most precise gravitational wave signal ever captured from a pair of merging [...]