Overview

• Astronomers measured the black hole’s mass at approximately 36.3 billion times that of the Sun, surpassing previous known records.
• The ultramassive, dormant black hole resides at the center of the Cosmic Horseshoe galaxy (SDSS J1148+1930) about 5 billion light-years from Earth.
• Its dormant state means it is not accreting matter, making it visible only through distortions in background light and accelerated stellar motions.
• The team combined gravitational lensing observations with stellar kinematic data to achieve a direct and precise mass determination.
• The discovery approaches theoretical upper limits for black hole growth and paves the way for future surveys with instruments like ESA’s Euclid telescope.