Supermassive black holes are extremely large, with some having a mass of more than 60 billion suns.
Supermassive black holes are extremely large, with some having a mass of more than 60 billion suns.
Light would take weeks to cross the shadow of a supermassive black hole like TON 618.
Light would take weeks to cross the shadow of a supermassive black hole like TON 618.
Black holes range from 100,000 solar mass to billions and reside in the center of most large galaxies.
Black holes range from 100,000 solar mass to billions and reside in the center of most large galaxies.
Central black holes merge together when galaxies collide, contributing to their large size.
Central black holes merge together when galaxies collide, contributing to their large size.
A black hole's name comes from the event horizon, the area just beneath the surface that traps everything in its path forever.
A black hole's name comes from the event horizon, the area just beneath the surface that traps everything in its path forever.
The shadow of a black hole is about twice the size of its event horizon.
The shadow of a black hole is about twice the size of its event horizon.
The smallest supermassive black hole is 1601+3113, with a shadow smaller than the sun despite having a mass of 100,000 suns.
The smallest supermassive black hole is 1601+3113, with a shadow smaller than the sun despite having a mass of 100,000 suns.
Sagittarius A* is the Milky Way Galaxy's supermassive black hole, with a mass of 4.3 million suns and a diameter half the orbit of Mercury.
Sagittarius A* is the Milky Way Galaxy's supermassive black hole, with a mass of 4.3 million suns and a diameter half the orbit of Mercury.
NASA is developing the LISA mission to detect gravitational waves of merging black holes.
NASA is developing the LISA mission to detect gravitational waves of merging black holes.
Supermassive black holes are vastly larger than Earth, with the sun being more than 300,000 times heavier than Earth.
Supermassive black holes are vastly larger than Earth, with the sun being more than 300,000 times heavier than Earth.
Webb Telescope: Unraveling Space's Irritating Mysteries
Webb Telescope: Unraveling Space's Irritating Mysteries
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