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Scientists Discover Way to Send Information into Black Holes Without Using Energy

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Why Did the Universe’s Biggest Galaxies Stop Making Stars So Early?

The universe is nearly 13.8 billion years old, and many galaxies have spent most of that time steadily creating new stars. Our own Milky Way is a good example. Even today, more than 13 billion years after its birth, it continues to produce stars, although at a relatively slow pace.

But astronomers have long been puzzled by a very different group of galaxies. These were some of the most massive galaxies in the early universe, and instead of forming stars for billions of years, they appeared to shut down surprisingly quickly. They were born in spectacular bursts of activity and then stopped making stars only about one billion years later.

A new study led by researchers at the Institute of Astronomy, Geophysics, and Atmospheric Sciences at the University of São Paulo (IAG-USP) in Brazil may finally explain why these cosmic giants lived such short and dramatic lives.

A Cosmic Mystery

Observations of the distant universe show that many massive galaxies formed roughly three to four billion years after the Big Bang. Surprisingly, these galaxies became inactive very early in cosmic history. Astronomers call them massive quiescent galaxies (MQs) because they no longer form stars.

The existence of these galaxies has challenged scientists for years. Standard models of galaxy evolution struggle to explain how such enormous systems could grow so quickly and then suddenly stop producing stars.

To solve this puzzle, researchers investigated the relationship between MQs and another unusual class of galaxies known as dusty star-forming galaxies (DSFGs).

The Universe’s Most Productive Star Factories

DSFGs are among the most active star-producing galaxies ever discovered. While the Milky Way creates about one solar mass worth of stars each year, DSFGs can produce as much as 500 solar masses annually.

These galaxies are wrapped in thick clouds of dust that hide them from ordinary optical telescopes. Visible light cannot easily escape through the dense dust, making them difficult to observe.

However, the dust absorbs energy from young stars and re-emits it at longer wavelengths. As a result, DSFGs shine brightly in the infrared and submillimeter regions of the electromagnetic spectrum.

Powerful observatories such as the Atacama Large Millimeter/Submillimeter Array (ALMA) and the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) have helped astronomers discover and study thousands of these hidden star factories.

Yet one important question remained unanswered: Are dusty star-forming galaxies somehow connected to the massive quiescent galaxies seen later in the universe?

Looking Back Through Time

To investigate this possibility, researchers used advanced semi-analytical models of galaxy formation. They traced the evolution of galaxies at redshifts between 2 and 4, corresponding to a period when the universe was only three to four billion years old.

Redshift is a measure of how much light has been stretched as the universe expands. By studying galaxies at high redshift, astronomers effectively look back in time and observe the universe during its youth.

The results revealed a remarkable connection.

According to the study, between 86% and 96% of massive quiescent galaxies previously passed through a dusty star-forming phase. In other words, almost every giant inactive galaxy was once an extremely active stellar nursery.

This suggests that the two galaxy populations are not separate mysteries at all. Instead, they may represent different stages of the same evolutionary journey.

The Role of Violent Galactic Collisions

The researchers propose that the transformation from DSFG to MQ begins with a dramatic event: the merger of two massive galaxies.

When two galaxies of similar size collide and merge, enormous amounts of gas are driven toward the center of the newly forming system. This sudden concentration of material triggers two powerful processes simultaneously.

First, it creates an intense burst of star formation. Massive numbers of stars are born in a relatively short period, turning the galaxy into a brilliant cosmic star factory.

Second, the merger feeds the supermassive black hole located at the galaxy’s center. As the black hole rapidly consumes surrounding material, it releases tremendous amounts of energy.

The combined effects of these processes dramatically alter the galaxy’s future.

Running Out of Fuel

Stars require cold gas to form. During the merger-driven starburst, vast amounts of this gas are consumed at extraordinary rates.

At the same time, the growing supermassive black hole injects energy into the surrounding environment. This energy heats the gas in the galaxy’s halo, preventing it from cooling and falling back into the galaxy.

As a result, the galaxy loses access to the raw material needed for future star formation.

Without a fresh supply of cold gas, star production quickly comes to an end.

The study suggests that this shutdown process can occur in less than one billion years—a remarkably short period on cosmic timescales.

Essentially, these galaxies burn through their fuel so rapidly that they exhaust their star-forming potential while the universe is still young.

Why the Milky Way Survived

Most galaxies do not experience such dramatic early histories.

Instead of undergoing violent mergers soon after formation, many galaxies grow gradually over billions of years. They slowly accumulate gas from their surroundings and form stars at more moderate rates.

The Milky Way is a perfect example of this slower evolutionary path.

Because it did not consume its gas in a giant early starburst, it has retained enough material to continue forming stars for most of cosmic history.

Large mergers may still occur later in a galaxy’s life, but the effects are generally less extreme than the catastrophic collisions thought to create massive quiescent galaxies.

James Webb Is Revealing More Surprises

Recent observations from the James Webb Space Telescope have transformed astronomers’ understanding of the early universe.

JWST has identified many more dusty star-forming galaxies and massive quiescent galaxies than scientists expected. These discoveries provide valuable clues about how galaxies evolved during the universe’s first few billion years.

At the same time, the new observations have created fresh challenges.

The researchers acknowledge that their model still predicts fewer submillimeter-emitting galaxies than astronomers actually observe. This means some important details may still be missing from current theories.

The Next Generation of Telescopes

Although questions remain, the new study provides one of the most coherent explanations yet for why massive galaxies in the early universe stopped forming stars so quickly.

Future progress will depend on more sophisticated simulations and improved observations.

One of the most promising instruments for this work is the Giant Magellan Telescope (GMT), currently under construction in Chile’s Atacama Desert. With a massive 24.5-meter primary mirror, the GMT is expected to capture images several times sharper than those produced by the James Webb Space Telescope.

Astronomers hope the telescope will allow them to study galaxy mergers, starbursts, and supermassive black holes in unprecedented detail.

As new observations become available over the coming decade, scientists may finally uncover the full story of how some of the universe’s largest galaxies lived fast, burned bright, and died young.

The findings suggest that these cosmic giants were not born inactive. Instead, they experienced some of the most violent and productive periods of star formation ever seen, only to extinguish themselves through the very processes that made them so spectacular in the first place.

Reference: Pablo Araya-Araya et al, The connection between dusty star-forming galaxies and the first massive quenched galaxies, Astronomy & Astrophysics (2026). DOI: 10.1051/0004-6361/202557426

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