Abstract
Supermassive black holes are ubiquitous in the nearby Universe. Their lifecycle appears to be closely connected to the evolution of galaxies. How and when did these mysterious objects form? What was the first generation of black hole seeds? How did they grow quickly enough to power the most distant quasars? And how precisely do black holes co-evolve with galaxies? The speaker will summarize the demographics of central black holes in the local Universe and recent discoveries made with the James Webb Space Telescope that offer surprising, new insights into the earliest phases of black hole formation during the first billion years of cosmic history. He will outline what we know and the much else that still remains uncertain in this exciting new field.
IAS webpage for IAS Distinguished Lecture by Prof. Luis C. Ho: https://ias.hkust.edu.hk/events/the-birth-of-supermassive-black-holes-at-cosmic-dawn.