Giant black holes, with masses of a few billion times that of the Sun, have fascinated scientists, science-fiction writers and the general public alike since they were first proposed1 four decades ago. These supermassive black holes, which lurk in the centre of galaxies, are not just theoretical curiosities. Their existence was convincingly demonstrated 15 years ago, and soon astrophysicists realized that such black holes can have profound effects on how galaxies form2. This realization spurred a flurry of studies aiming to understand the joint evolution of galaxies and black holes.
展开▼
