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Ginormous Black Hole Bigger Than Its Galaxy Shocks Scientists

Astronomers have discovered a giant black hole nearly as large as 7 billion suns, which is much larger than expected in relation to its host galaxy’s size and its discovery has left scientists shocked.

According to the International Business Times, the size of a black hole is typically in direct relation to the size of the galaxy where it lives, however, this newly discovered black hole, named CID-947, observed from NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory and the W.M. Kecj Observatory in Hawaii, is much larger than the small galaxy in which it resides.

A new study published in the journal Science indicates that it was first formed 2 billions years after the Big Bang.

According to Megan Urry of Yale University, the discovery of CID-947 was “quite a shock” to find, in part because their survey never intended to observe exotic objects, just the average ones.

Our survey was designed to observe the average objects, not the exotic ones. This project specifically targeted moderate black holes that inhabit galaxies today. It was quite a shock to see such a ginormous black hole.

Most galaxies have a black hole near their heart, including the Milky Way, but they usually take up no more than 0.2 to 0.5 percent of the total galaxy.

The study’s lead author, Benny Trakhtenbrot, an astrophysicist at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich, was quoted by Space.com in a report as having said that the galaxy’s “measurements correspond to the mass of a typical galaxy,” which in turn indicates the existence of “a gigantic black hole within a normal-size galaxy.”

The measurements correspond to the mass of a typical galaxy. We therefore have a gigantic black hole within a normal-size galaxy.

While there’s quite a bit to take in and much to be in awe over, it’s the size of the galaxy surrounding the black that has proven to be the biggest surprise for the team of scientists behind its discovery.

Recently, NASA’s NuSTAR telescope unveiled five super massive black holes spanning across nine galaxies.

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