29th April 2022: Ricarda Beckmann (SCR) - The mystery of the first supermassive black holes
In the very early universe, not too long after the first stars were born and when galaxies were still forming, we already see evidence for the very first supermassive black holes. Surprisingly, these black holes were already as massive as the biggest ones we find in the Universe today, and by their very existence challenge our understanding of how massive black holes form and evolve. In this talk, I will explore what we do know about these fascinating objects, how we think they came to be and why they are so important for the galaxies we see around us today.
Ricarda Beckmann is a computational astrophysicist who uses powerful computer simulations to study the evolution of black holes across cosmic time.