Early Universe’s supermassive black holes grew in cocoons like butterflies
Summary
Ars Technica reports on JWST observations of the Little Red Dots and a Nature study proposing a cocoon phase for young supermassive black holes. The model suggests Thomson scattering in dense surrounding gas broadens spectral lines, reconciling mass estimates with galaxy masses, explaining X-ray faintness with an infrared-bright signal, and highlighting a new stage in black hole growth.