Astronomers using the European Space Agency’s (ESA) Euclid space telescope have identified 31 black-hole-powered quasars from the early universe, including the most ancient and distant quasar ever documented. According to a study published July 6 in Astronomy & Astrophysics, these objects existed as early as 670 million years after the Big Bang, shining with the luminosity of a trillion suns.
Euclid Telescope Accelerates Discovery of Ancient Quasars
The Euclid mission has detected more than three times the number of ancient quasars in one year than astronomers previously found in a decade. Daming Yang of Leiden University stated that these discoveries allow scientists to study these systems as a population rather than as isolated, rare examples.
The survey identified 31 quasars in total. Twelve of these existed when the universe was approximately 770 million years old. Two specific quasars, designated EUCL J172902.75+641018.1 and EUCL J125308.55+705432.3, stand out as the oldest recorded, located roughly 13 billion light-years away.
Solving the Mystery of Supermassive Black Hole Growth
According to Daming Yang, studying these early quasars helps researchers understand how such enormous systems formed and grew so rapidly during the universe's infancy.
Antonio La Marca, an ESA Research Fellow on the Euclid team, noted that this finding more than doubles the known number of quasars from this specific ancient epoch. He described the effort as a “census” of the dawn of the universe.
Comparison: Traditional Hunting vs. Euclid Survey
| Metric | Previous Methods | Euclid Mission |
|---|---|---|
| Discovery Rate | ~10 quasars over a decade | 31 quasars in one year |
| Detection Range | Primarily the brightest objects | Bright and fainter quasars |
| Sky Coverage | Limited targeted areas | One-third of the total sky |
The Search for Dark Energy and Dark Matter
These discoveries are part of the Euclid Wide Survey. The mission aims to map the “dark universe,” specifically focusing on dark energy—the force accelerating the expansion of the universe—and dark matter, the invisible substance that makes up most of the cosmos’s mass.
Researcher Pettorino stated that Euclid’s effectiveness comes from combining a large survey area with sharp imaging and space-based infrared vision. This allows the team to isolate rare, distant objects more efficiently than previous ground-based or space-based attempts.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a quasar?
A quasar is an extremely bright galactic nucleus powered by a supermassive black hole feeding on a disk of matter.
How old are the quasars found by Euclid?
The oldest discovered existed just 670 million years after the Big Bang, making them roughly 13 billion years old.
Why is the Euclid telescope better at finding them?
According to the research team, Euclid can search huge areas of the sky more efficiently and capture fainter light than previous instruments.
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