TEL AVIV, Israel, Dec. 27 (UPI) -- Israeli astronomers studying black holes say some began forming when the universe was about 1.2 billion years old, much earlier than previously thought.
Scientist from Tel Aviv University say black holes smaller than the massive ones seen at later cosmic times began forming well before the previous estimates of black holes starting at 2 to 4 billion years after the Big Bang, a university release said Monday.
Data obtained from some of the largest telescopes on Earth show the black holes that were active when the universe was 1.2 billion years old are about a 10th the size of the most massive black holes seen at later times. However, they are growing much faster.
Such black holes may be related to the very first stars in the universe, the researchers say.
The results will be reported in a paper to appear in the Astrophysical Journal.
