Webb Space Telescope's little red dots could hold key to first black holes

Johns Hopkins researchers found that the little red dots observed in the universe, specifically QSO1, could be primordial black holes. The findings are based on data from the James Webb Space Telescope and are published in Physical Review Letters. QSO1, which existed 700 million years after the Big Bang, is composed mostly of hydrogen and helium, the first elements formed in the universe, and lacks heavier elements. The researchers tested whether QSO1 could be a primordial black hole, which formed before stars and other elements. They modeled three scenarios to see if a primordial black hole could grow to QSO1's size and form a swirling disk. The most likely scenario involves a smaller primordial black hole consuming surrounding gas and energy to grow to QSO1's size. The study suggests that some of the little red dots could be primordial black holes, but further research is needed to confirm their existence. The researchers plan to explore how many of the 100 observed little red dots could be primordial black holes. To prove their existence, they would need to find a black hole that is too light to be an astrophysical black hole or too old to predates stars. The study highlights the importance of understanding the early universe and the formation of primordial black holes.

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