Surprising Science — October 11, 2010

Which Came First, the Galaxy or the Black Hole?

At the heart of every galaxy like our own Milky Way lies a supermassive black hole, but scientists are unsure which develops first.

Michio Kaku

A weekly newsletter featuring the biggest ideas from the smartest people

Every Wednesday Michio Kaku will be answering reader questions about physics and futuristic science. If you have a question for Dr. Kaku, just post it in the comment section below and check back on Wednesdays to see if he answers it.

Today, Dr. Kaku addresses a question posed by Andy Speight: Are the supermassive black holes at the center of galaxies involved in the formation of those galaxies?

A weekly newsletter featuring the biggest ideas from the smartest people

A vivid depiction of a cosmic event showing a jet of orange and red energy extending from a bright source in the vastness of space, surrounded by stars and interstellar matter.

Starts With A Bang

Longest, strongest black hole jets of all-time discovered

With the discovery of Porphyrion, we’ve now seen black hole jets spanning 24 million light-years: the scale of the cosmic web.

smbh growth evolution from direct collapse seed

Starts With A Bang

Ask Ethan: Did black holes form directly from the Big Bang?

Even in the very early Universe, there were heavy, supermassive black holes at the centers of galaxies. How did they get so big so fast?

An illustration of a black hole surrounded by countless colorful stars in space, with several green lines indicating orbital paths around the black hole.

Starts With A Bang

Strongest “missing link” in black hole physics discovered at last

We know of stellar mass and supermassive black holes, but intermediate mass ones have long proved elusive. Until now.

Starts With A Bang

The 4 big black hole frontiers for gravitational waves

So far, gravitational waves have revealed stellar mass black holes and neutron stars, plus a cosmic background. So much more is coming.

Starts With A Bang

Stars alone can’t explain black holes, JWST data reveals

Today, supermassive black holes and their host galaxies tell a specific story in terms of mass. But JWST reveals a different story early on.

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