Scientists at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) say they have discovered what could be a completely new type of cosmic object, which they have named a "black hole star". The finding may help explain the mysterious bright red objects often seen in deep space images captured by the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). The newly identified object, known as MoM-BH*-1, was spotted in the early universe only a few hundred million years after the Big Bang. Researchers say it appears to be as large as the Solar System and produces around 100 billion times more energy than any known star can generate.
According to the research team, the object is likely a huge cloud of dense hydrogen gas surrounding a black hole about 100,000 times the mass of the Sun. Unlike ordinary stars, which are powered by nuclear fusion, the black hole star is thought to be fuelled by material falling into its central black hole.
The discovery was made during a survey called Mirage or Miracle, which was designed to search for some of the earliest galaxies in the universe. While examining JWST images, astronomers noticed an unusually bright and red object that did not match any known type of star or galaxy.
Researchers found that the object's light contained almost no elements other than hydrogen and helium. Computer simulations suggested that a dense hydrogen envelope surrounding an active black hole could explain both its unusual colour and extreme brightness.
Lead author Rohan Naidu of MIT said the team's understanding of the object is developing quickly, but current evidence points to a massive black hole hidden inside a star-like cloud of gas. He added that similar objects may explain many of the so-called "little red dots" that appear throughout JWST images of the early universe.
The findings have been published in the journal Nature. Scientists believe the discovery could improve understanding of how the first massive black holes formed and evolved shortly after the birth of the universe.
