Supermassive Black Holes To Stars - It Wasn't Us!
Wednesday, January 21, 2009 - 17:56
in Astronomy & Space
A team of Yale University astronomers say that galaxies stop forming stars long before their central supermassive black holes reach their most powerful stage, meaning the black holes can’t be responsible for shutting down star formation. Astronomers believe that active galactic nuclei (AGN), the supermassive, extremely energetic black holes at the centers of many young galaxies, were responsible for shutting down star formation in their host galaxies once they grew large enough. It was thought that AGN feed on the surrounding galactic material, producing enormous amounts of energy (expelled in the form of light) and heat the surrounding material so that it can no longer cool and condense into stars. read more
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