Supermassive Black holes show ‘Time Dilation’ in early Universe

Last Updated06/07/2023

Scientists observations on a ferocious class of black holes called quasars to demonstrate “time dilation” in the early universe, show time then passed only about a fifth as quickly as it does today.
The observations stretch back to about 12.3 billion years ago, when the universe was roughly a tenth its present age.
Quasars – among the brightest objects in the universe – were used as a “clock” in the study to measure time in the deep past.

Quasars are tremendously active supermassive black holes
Most quasars are larger than our solar system and usually reside at centres of galaxies.
They devour matter drawn to them by their immense gravitational pull
They are very luminous objects in faraway galaxies that emit jets at radio frequencies.

The researchers used observations involving the brightness of 190 quasars across the universe dating to about 1.5 billion years after the Big Bang event that gave rise to the cosmos.
They compared the brightness of these quasars at various wavelengths to that of quasars existing today
They found that certain fluctuations that occur in a particular amount of time today did so five times more slowly in the most ancient quasars.

Einstein’s general theory of relativity: It showed that time and space are intertwined and that the universe has been expanding outward in all directions since the Big Bang.
Astrophysicist Geraint Lewis: He said this continual expansion explains how time flowed more slowly earlier in the universe’s history relative to today.
Other Scientists: They previously documented time dilation dating to roughly 7 billion years ago, based on observations of stellar explosions called supernovas.

These are highly energetic explosions in the Universe releasing an enormous amount of energy.
A supernova is the explosion of a star.
It is the largest explosion that takes place in space.
Supernovas are often seen in other galaxies.
But supernovas are difficult to see in our own Milky Way galaxy because dust blocks our view.