Astronomers have identified a black hole potentially weighing 36 billion solar masses, possibly ranking among the largest black holes ever found. It resides in the Cosmic Horseshoe, a pair of galaxies in Leo, whose unusual shape may be attributed to this black hole's gravitational influence. The researchers utilized spectrographic data from the Multi Unit Spectroscopic Explorer and observations from the Hubble Space Telescope, examining how the massive black hole affects light from a more distant galaxy through a phenomenon known as gravitational lensing.
The latest, still-unnamed black hole measures a mind-boggling 36 billion times the mass of the Sun, making it one of the largest ever discovered.
The Cosmic Horseshoe, which contains this enormous black hole, demonstrates gravitational lensing effects that warps light from more distant galaxies.
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