Black hole research explores galactic evolution and stellar-mass detection

New research published in The Astrophysical Journal Letters examines how supermassive black holes influence the evolution of their host galaxies. While these black holes are localized to the central regions, they can impact the circumgalactic medium (CGM)—the vast region of gas surrounding a galaxy. The study suggests that powerful jets of ionized gas emitted by supermassive black holes carry material to the outer edges of galaxies, potentially explaining why much of the CGM remains at the outer periphery rather than cooling and falling inward to form new stars.

Separately, scientists are working to locate stellar-mass black holes within the Milky Way. While models predict between 100 million and 1 billion such black holes exist, they are significantly harder to detect than supermassive black holes. Unlike active galactic nuclei or quasars that emit intense radiation, many stellar-mass black holes are isolated and subdued. A study led by Abdurakhmon Nosirov of Fudan University utilizes Gaia DR3 data to search for isolated black hole candidates within 15 parsecs of the solar system.