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(soft music)

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Today, the advent

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of cutting edge observational instruments

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is illuminating amazing facts about life and the universe,

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one after another.
(rocket blasting)

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NASA's latest space telescope, TESS,

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is expanding the search for life on other planets.

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(awe-inspiring music)

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Even earthbound telescopes are getting in on the act,

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and astronomers are giving us astonishing news,

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visual proof of the reality of black holes.

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{\an8}Oh!

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A century ago, Einstein's theory predicted

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the existence of black holes,

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and numerous scientists have searched for them ever since.

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Black holes suck in everything around them.

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Even light cannot escape their black depths.

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No person had ever seen the actual object.

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Then, in April 2019, an image of this phantom

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was revealed for the first time,

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and stunning new findings overturned conventional theories.

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A startling new picture is emerging.

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The existence of black holes

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is what made life on Earth possible.

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I would say having the recipe for life in place has

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to do with the activity of black holes

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in the very early universe.

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Black holes have concealed

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the greatest mysteries of the universe.

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In this episode, we'll explore the connection

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between black holes and life on earth.

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(triumphant music)

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(upbeat music)

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This is the Mizusawa branch

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of the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan,

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nearly a year before the press conference

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announcing the first images of a black hole.

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In June 2018, a fateful day arrived.

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The leader of Japan's efforts

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to observe black holes is Mareki Honma.

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This was a special day, when all of the data

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from observations of a black hole would come together,

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after 10 long years attempting to see into the darkness.

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(ethereal music)

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But telescopes were pointed

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in the direction of the constellation Virgo.

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There was a cluster of galaxies in Virgo,

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some 60 million light years away from Earth.

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(stars whooshing)

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Within it, an especially bright group of stars,

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the galaxy M87.

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Surveillance data suggested there was a black hole

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at the center of this galaxy,

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but no one had ever seen it.

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(dramatic music)

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That's because it would require an observation device

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with such super precision that it could discern,

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from Earth, a tennis ball on the face of the Moon.

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(ethereal music)

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To solve this problem, scientists found a way

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to create a monster telescope of astonishing reach.

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(dramatic music)

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Honma worked with other astronomers

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to launch a project called the Event Horizon Telescope

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that would network eight radio telescopes

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from around the world.

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(telescopes dinging)

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When these widely separated telescopes

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all observed the same astronomical body,

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they would have a capacity equal

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to a super massive telescope, the size of Earth.

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This networked telescope is 3 million times

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more powerful than human eyesight.

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That power would be used to see a black hole.

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It had already been months

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since the simultaneous observations began

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across the globe, in the Antarctic,

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North and South America, Europe,

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the world's radio telescopes

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turned toward the black hole.

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All right.
<v ->Oh yes, yes.

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The five day period

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of observation enjoyed good weather and proceeded smoothly,

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but the results could not be seen immediately.

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(dramatic music)

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With observations taking place in eight locations,

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the data did not match perfectly,

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and tiny distortions caused a fuzzy image.

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The data had to be adjusted to sharpen the picture.

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(soft music)

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How could they make the fuzzy image clear?

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Honma and his team spent over a year

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developing computer programs to process the image.

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14 months after the observations were made,

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the preparations were finally in place.

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The computer programs could now be used

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for the actual imaging process

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to see the first likeness of a black hole.

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(keys tapping)

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As the data processing continued.

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Whoa.
<v ->Wah!

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{\an8}(people laughing)

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{\an8}(people clapping)

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(speaking in foreign language)

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This is the clarified image

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of the black hole that Honma's team produced.

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At the same time, teams overseas

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used entirely different methods

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to perform the same clarification process.

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If their results matched those from Japan, it would confirm

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that a black hole had been accurately captured.

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(mysterious music)

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{\an8}(gentle music)

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{\an8}The results, a perfect match.

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{\an8}At long last, we were able

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{\an8}to see a true image of a black hole.

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{\an8}(ethereal music)

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The first image

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of a black hole captured by humankind.

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The black part in the middle, within the circle,

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is the black hole itself.

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It has a diameter of 40 billion kilometers,

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25 billion miles across.

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This super massive black hole would fill an area as large

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as the orbit of Pluto around our sun.

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The black hole is surrounded by a ring of bright light,

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but black holes are supposed to be entirely dark

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and emit no light.

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What's the explanation?

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the strong gravity of a black hole draws

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in gas from the surrounding area.

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(dramatic music)

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The gas spirals in as it moves closer to the black hole.

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It accelerates as it nears the center.

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This causes friction that raises the temperature of the gas,

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which emits light.

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(forceful music)

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Scientists also noted that the brightness of the light

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was different on the top and bottom.

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The bottom part is brighter

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because the gas is moving toward us.

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(dramatic music)

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This is what Honma believes a black hole might look like.

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Seen from the Earth, the gas is rotating

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with a vertical orientation.

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The temperature of the bright part

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is 6 billion degrees Celsius.

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That's nearly 11 billion degrees Fahrenheit,

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400 times hotter than the center of the Sun.

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We used to think a black hole could never be seen,

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but because it draws in surrounding gas,

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it emits an intensely strong light.

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(gentle music)

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The world first learned of the existence of black holes

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as a result of Albert Einstein's

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general theory of relativity.

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Published in 1915,

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it explains the essence of gravity.

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According to Einstein, objects

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with large mass warp space in their vicinity.

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The nature of gravity is that these warps

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influence the movement of other objects.

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The German physicist, Karl Schwarzschild,

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further elaborated this theory.

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Schwarzschild reasoned that as the mass

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of a star increases, the warp in space grows stronger

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until light itself cannot escape.

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In short, he predicted the existence of black holes.

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(dramatic music)

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In 1971,
(star dinging)

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an object of extremely large mass

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that could not be seen was discovered

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in the constellation Cygnus.

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This was the first discovery of a black hole.

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It is now believed that there is a massive black hole

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at the center of most galaxies, including the Milky Way.

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More than 40 years ago, Martin Rees

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at the University of Cambridge in England

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was the first scientist to predict the presence

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of black holes at the center of galaxies.

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My interest is to understand the evolution

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of the universe, and from a hot, dense beginning,

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to this present state,

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it was hard to avoid the idea

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that when some kind of runaway process happened

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in the center of a galaxy,

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it would end up leaving a black hole.

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(awe-inspiring music)

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Rees proposed several possible ways

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for gigantic black holes to form.

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One thesis is that gas coalesced at the very early stage

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of the universe,

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(gas whooshing)
creating clumps

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of enormous mass without ever becoming stars.

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(gentle music)

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It is estimated that there are hundreds of billions

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of these giant black holes in the universe.

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It was the image of one of these black holes

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that scientists were finally able to capture.

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Rees had pursued the study of black holes

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on a theoretical basis.

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That a black hole had actually been observed

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represents major progress, he believes.

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It was a great achievement.

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It is the sharpest image we have

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of the central region of a galaxy.

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So I think it's wonderful that we achieved so much

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in understanding how our universe has evolved

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from a hot dense beginning about 13.8 billion years ago,

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into what we see around us.

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Black holes were not

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simply eccentric heavenly bodies,

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they were lead actors directly involved

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in the evolution of the universe.

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Scientists are finally beginning

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to see the big picture.

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Astronomers hope to unveil the relationship

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between black holes and the history of the universe.

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One of those scientists is Yoshiki Matsuoka,

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who might be dubbed a black hole hunter.

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(soft music)

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For his observations, Matsuoka uses a telescope

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that stands 4,200 meters above sea level

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on Mauna Kea in Hawaii.

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The Subaru telescope.

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This giant telescope has a wide field of view

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that can observe large swaths of space with high resolution.

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{\an8}(ethereal music)

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Matsuoka studies the early stages

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of the universe by making observations

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in the deepest areas of space,

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billions of light years away.

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The distance light travels in a year

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is called one light year.

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When we observe an object one light year away from Earth,

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we see light that was emitted one year ago.

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In other words, we see that object

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as it appeared one year in the past.

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To look 10 billion years into the past,

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we observe objects that are 10 billion light years away.

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The universe was born 13.8 billion years ago.

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Matsuoka is hunting for a black hole

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from shortly after that time.

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(tense music)

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How does he actually conduct the search?

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One telltale sign is an object called a quasar.

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A black hole is concealed in its core.

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The black hole itself cannot be seen,

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but because it absorbs large amounts of surrounding gas,

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bright light is vented that appears red from earth.

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This is a quasar.

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Scientists search for areas where there are few stars

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in the foreground, so they can get an unobstructed view

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into the depths of space.

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(soft music)

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Is this simply a nearby red star,

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or is it a distant quasar?

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That determination is made by analyzing the light

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from the object and accurately calculating its distance.

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Matsuoka once spent 150 days

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without finding even one quasar.

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{\an8}What about the object he found today?

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Using the position of the white line

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{\an8}to measure the distance to the object.

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{\an8}(soft music)

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The quasar they found

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that day existed nearly 13 billion years ago,

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shortly after the birth of the universe.

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A black hole was hidden there.

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What was particularly surprising was its brightness.

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This ancient black hole, when compared

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00:17:21,370 --> 00:17:24,470
to the black hole in the galaxy M87,

273
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was emitting 10,000 times more energy, a monster black hole.

274
00:17:36,200 --> 00:17:37,960
In the past five years,

275
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Matsuoka and his team have identified

276
00:17:40,460 --> 00:17:45,053
about 100 black holes from the early stages of the universe.

277
00:17:46,050 --> 00:17:49,350
These giants emitted tremendous energy,

278
00:17:49,350 --> 00:17:52,080
shining more intensely than any object

279
00:17:52,080 --> 00:17:53,453
in the universe today.

280
00:17:54,870 --> 00:17:58,950
Why were ancient black holes so fiercely active?

281
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So monstrous?

282
00:18:20,231 --> 00:18:21,064
(dramatic music)

283
00:18:21,064 --> 00:18:23,153
The universe originated with the Big Bang.

284
00:18:24,000 --> 00:18:26,420
In the period immediately after,

285
00:18:26,420 --> 00:18:29,100
the universe was smaller than it is now,

286
00:18:29,100 --> 00:18:31,653
with dense concentrations of gas.

287
00:18:32,880 --> 00:18:35,490
Black holes swallowed up this gas

288
00:18:35,490 --> 00:18:37,773
and radiated intense light.

289
00:18:38,620 --> 00:18:42,593
Their overwhelming presence made them a dominant force.

290
00:18:46,432 --> 00:18:47,450
(forceful music)

291
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Black holes not only emit powerful light,

292
00:18:50,740 --> 00:18:53,823
but also engage in other surprising behavior.

293
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(dramatic music)

294
00:19:01,060 --> 00:19:04,283
Eduardo Banados is another black hole hunter.

295
00:19:05,430 --> 00:19:08,350
In 2018, he discovered a quasar

296
00:19:08,350 --> 00:19:11,113
from the time period soon after the Big Bang.

297
00:19:12,009 --> 00:19:14,467
When he analyzed it in detail--

298
00:19:16,120 --> 00:19:17,230
We got these images,

299
00:19:17,230 --> 00:19:19,050
and basically all the radio emission

300
00:19:19,050 --> 00:19:21,200
was coming from this one object.

301
00:19:21,200 --> 00:19:24,040
And that was incredible.

302
00:19:24,040 --> 00:19:27,530
We see a very central, a very bright central source.

303
00:19:27,530 --> 00:19:31,670
And then we have these two jets coming

304
00:19:31,670 --> 00:19:33,750
out of the central source.

305
00:19:33,750 --> 00:19:38,750
And until now this is the most clear evidence

306
00:19:38,850 --> 00:19:41,690
that even in the most distant quasars,

307
00:19:41,690 --> 00:19:45,803
in the very early universe, powerful radio jets exist.

308
00:19:48,069 --> 00:19:50,480
the black hole is within the light

309
00:19:50,480 --> 00:19:53,880
at the center and to the left and right,

310
00:19:53,880 --> 00:19:56,530
it appears that gigantic clumps of light

311
00:19:56,530 --> 00:19:58,423
have spewed from the core.

312
00:19:59,850 --> 00:20:02,100
The distance from one end to the other

313
00:20:02,100 --> 00:20:04,975
is as far as 5,000 light years.

314
00:20:04,975 --> 00:20:06,590
(drum pounding)

315
00:20:06,590 --> 00:20:09,453
This is a visualization of the phenomenon.

316
00:20:11,000 --> 00:20:13,571
The bands of light are called jets.

317
00:20:13,571 --> 00:20:14,800
(dramatic music)

318
00:20:14,800 --> 00:20:17,140
They are thought to be composed of gas,

319
00:20:17,140 --> 00:20:19,945
spewing from the core of the black hole.

320
00:20:19,945 --> 00:20:22,528
(jets roaring)

321
00:20:26,730 --> 00:20:29,680
In quick succession, similar jets were found

322
00:20:29,680 --> 00:20:32,363
to be spewing from other ancient black holes.

323
00:20:36,660 --> 00:20:40,470
It turns out the black hole from the galaxy M87,

324
00:20:40,470 --> 00:20:43,890
captured by those eight telescopes across the globe,

325
00:20:43,890 --> 00:20:45,975
also had these jets.

326
00:20:45,975 --> 00:20:48,808
(dramatic music)

327
00:20:50,550 --> 00:20:54,380
At the time when that now famous image was captured,

328
00:20:54,380 --> 00:20:57,073
another image was also recorded.

329
00:20:58,090 --> 00:21:00,750
The scientist in charge of the second image

330
00:21:00,750 --> 00:21:04,748
is a colleague of Honma, Kazuhiro Hada.

331
00:21:04,748 --> 00:21:05,830
(ethereal music)

332
00:21:05,830 --> 00:21:09,090
While the worldwide observation project concentrated

333
00:21:09,090 --> 00:21:11,316
on the black hole itself,

334
00:21:11,316 --> 00:21:15,710
three East Asian countries cooperated to make observations

335
00:21:15,710 --> 00:21:19,113
on a wider expanse surrounding the black hole.

336
00:21:20,260 --> 00:21:24,413
The resulting image showed two streaks of smoky light.

337
00:21:25,330 --> 00:21:28,383
These were M87's jets.

338
00:21:53,343 --> 00:21:55,280
While a black hole is supposed

339
00:21:55,280 --> 00:21:57,200
to swallow everything,

340
00:21:57,200 --> 00:22:01,184
why are large streams of gas spewing out of it?

341
00:22:01,184 --> 00:22:03,851
(gentle music)

342
00:22:05,880 --> 00:22:09,513
What takes place in the immediate vicinity of a black hole?

343
00:22:10,820 --> 00:22:13,500
One scientist studying this mechanism

344
00:22:13,500 --> 00:22:17,745
is Ken Ohsuga at the University of Tsukuba.

345
00:22:17,745 --> 00:22:18,578
(keys tapping)
(exciting music)

346
00:22:18,578 --> 00:22:21,510
He simulated a black hole on a computer,

347
00:22:21,510 --> 00:22:25,571
calculating its behavior based on the laws of physics.

348
00:22:25,571 --> 00:22:28,140
The results showed that the large amounts

349
00:22:28,140 --> 00:22:31,020
of gas swirling around a black hole

350
00:22:31,020 --> 00:22:34,013
create a phenomenon of tremendous force.

351
00:22:37,210 --> 00:22:41,610
Gas revolves around a black hole at rapid speeds.

352
00:22:41,610 --> 00:22:44,730
The resulting friction creates high temperatures,

353
00:22:44,730 --> 00:22:48,290
and a strong magnetic force develops.

354
00:22:48,290 --> 00:22:52,000
The high speed revolution wraps lines of magnetic force

355
00:22:52,000 --> 00:22:56,440
around the black hole and energy builds up within them.

356
00:22:56,440 --> 00:22:58,310
When that energy reaches a level

357
00:22:58,310 --> 00:23:00,403
that can no longer be contained,

358
00:23:02,150 --> 00:23:05,060
the lines of magnetic force seek to escape

359
00:23:05,060 --> 00:23:08,973
and spring out, above and below the black hole.

360
00:23:09,980 --> 00:23:13,170
This causes gas in the vicinity to spew forth

361
00:23:13,170 --> 00:23:16,723
with tremendous speed in the form of jets.

362
00:23:37,380 --> 00:23:39,030
That's not all.

363
00:23:39,030 --> 00:23:41,963
The simulation depicted further phenomena as well.

364
00:23:43,031 --> 00:23:45,893
In addition to the jets that rocketed forth above

365
00:23:45,893 --> 00:23:50,400
and below the black hole, gas was actually pushed out

366
00:23:50,400 --> 00:23:52,850
in other directions as well.

367
00:23:52,850 --> 00:23:55,517
(curious music)

368
00:24:19,740 --> 00:24:20,573
The understanding

369
00:24:20,573 --> 00:24:23,694
that black holes dispersed large quantities of matter

370
00:24:23,694 --> 00:24:26,670
provided a clue to their true role

371
00:24:26,670 --> 00:24:28,833
in the formation of the universe.

372
00:24:28,833 --> 00:24:31,583
(dramatic music)

373
00:24:36,174 --> 00:24:38,830
(gentle music)
(speaking in foreign language)

374
00:24:38,830 --> 00:24:43,290
In April 2019, one scientist in particular watched

375
00:24:43,290 --> 00:24:46,820
with intense interest as news of the black hole image

376
00:24:46,820 --> 00:24:47,763
was announced.

377
00:24:48,680 --> 00:24:50,990
In Arizona.
(people clapping)

378
00:24:50,990 --> 00:24:52,740
Aurora Simionescu

379
00:24:52,740 --> 00:24:56,030
of the Netherlands Institute for Space Research.

380
00:24:56,030 --> 00:24:58,290
She had already been paying attention

381
00:24:58,290 --> 00:25:00,123
to the M87 black hole.

382
00:25:03,639 --> 00:25:04,960
I do think this is going to help,

383
00:25:04,960 --> 00:25:09,030
but it is a bit soon to know exactly how.

384
00:25:09,030 --> 00:25:11,690
Maybe we need to have a bit more observations

385
00:25:11,690 --> 00:25:14,037
of how this works, but.

386
00:25:14,037 --> 00:25:16,704
(bike rattling)

387
00:25:18,683 --> 00:25:21,902
Simionescu is a trailblazing astrophysicist

388
00:25:21,902 --> 00:25:25,184
who travels the world researching black holes.

389
00:25:25,184 --> 00:25:28,279
(gentle music)

390
00:25:28,279 --> 00:25:31,420
Born in Romania, she was a prodigy

391
00:25:31,420 --> 00:25:35,543
who won the International Physics Olympiad at age 17.

392
00:25:37,010 --> 00:25:40,320
After studying physics at a university in Germany,

393
00:25:40,320 --> 00:25:43,513
she has been engaged internationally in her research.

394
00:25:45,717 --> 00:25:48,397
At age 30, she published a paper

395
00:25:48,397 --> 00:25:51,110
in the prestigious journal "Nature"

396
00:25:51,110 --> 00:25:51,943
and is currently one

397
00:25:51,943 --> 00:25:54,943
of the world's premier black hole researchers.

398
00:25:58,077 --> 00:25:58,910
It tends to be so dense

399
00:25:58,910 --> 00:26:01,883
that the only thing that it can be is a black hole.

400
00:26:02,880 --> 00:26:04,890
She is attempting to use black holes

401
00:26:04,890 --> 00:26:08,520
to explain the great mystery of how the universe evolved

402
00:26:08,520 --> 00:26:10,423
into its current configuration.

403
00:26:22,500 --> 00:26:25,370
Simionescu has always been intrigued

404
00:26:25,370 --> 00:26:30,300
by the ultimate question of why we exist in the universe.

405
00:26:30,300 --> 00:26:34,000
I think solving problems in science

406
00:26:34,000 --> 00:26:37,480
is a little bit like solving a puzzle.

407
00:26:37,480 --> 00:26:39,720
Sometimes you're lucky the first time,

408
00:26:39,720 --> 00:26:41,930
but sometimes you have to try.

409
00:26:41,930 --> 00:26:44,660
You have to try several times until you manage

410
00:26:44,660 --> 00:26:47,253
to do the measurement that you, that you wanna do.

411
00:26:49,610 --> 00:26:50,443
Finished.

412
00:26:52,260 --> 00:26:53,740
Her search for the pieces

413
00:26:53,740 --> 00:26:55,313
of the puzzle continued.

414
00:26:56,730 --> 00:27:01,090
In 2013, she came to Japan to participate in a project

415
00:27:01,090 --> 00:27:05,373
of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, JAXA.

416
00:27:07,420 --> 00:27:11,100
Using the Suzaku X-ray astronomy satellite,

417
00:27:11,100 --> 00:27:14,827
she made a major discovery that startled scientists.

418
00:27:14,827 --> 00:27:17,494
(soaring music)

419
00:27:20,010 --> 00:27:22,830
We are looking at the observation that we did

420
00:27:22,830 --> 00:27:25,820
with the Suzaku satellite of the Virgo cluster.

421
00:27:25,820 --> 00:27:29,580
And each of these little squares over here

422
00:27:29,580 --> 00:27:32,590
is one observation with Suzaku.

423
00:27:32,590 --> 00:27:36,701
So in total, we had, I think 65 different times

424
00:27:36,701 --> 00:27:39,600
that the Suzaku satellite looked at this place,

425
00:27:39,600 --> 00:27:41,170
this place, this place, this place,

426
00:27:41,170 --> 00:27:42,190
this place on the sky.

427
00:27:42,190 --> 00:27:44,230
I thought it's a very beautiful result.

428
00:27:44,230 --> 00:27:46,601
I think it was a bit unexpected.

429
00:27:46,601 --> 00:27:48,910
(gentle music)

430
00:27:48,910 --> 00:27:50,400
Simionescu focused

431
00:27:50,400 --> 00:27:53,040
on the distribution of chemical elements

432
00:27:53,040 --> 00:27:55,643
in the vicinity of galaxy M87.

433
00:27:58,260 --> 00:28:02,190
This is the data from the X-ray observations.

434
00:28:02,190 --> 00:28:05,530
The shape and size of the wave reveals which elements

435
00:28:05,530 --> 00:28:07,813
are present and their concentration.

436
00:28:11,010 --> 00:28:13,670
This wave shows signs of iron,

437
00:28:13,670 --> 00:28:16,593
magnesium, silicon and sulfur.

438
00:28:19,500 --> 00:28:22,530
With iron given a value of 100,

439
00:28:22,530 --> 00:28:26,028
the concentration of other elements were compared.

440
00:28:26,028 --> 00:28:29,740
What surprised Simionescu was that this ratio

441
00:28:29,740 --> 00:28:33,763
of elements is nearly the same throughout the universe.

442
00:28:35,470 --> 00:28:40,250
At the center of M87, crowded with stars,

443
00:28:40,250 --> 00:28:42,500
at the edge of the galaxy cluster,

444
00:28:42,500 --> 00:28:44,053
where there were few stars,

445
00:28:46,008 --> 00:28:49,793
in another galaxy, and in our solar system,

446
00:28:51,260 --> 00:28:54,453
the same elements in the same proportions.

447
00:28:56,370 --> 00:28:58,610
Until then, it was believed

448
00:28:58,610 --> 00:29:03,110
that the ratio of elements would vary across the universe.

449
00:29:03,110 --> 00:29:05,750
Simionescu's discovery overturned one

450
00:29:05,750 --> 00:29:08,453
of astronomy's fundamental assumptions.

451
00:29:11,430 --> 00:29:15,040
What could possibly explain this stunning uniformity

452
00:29:15,040 --> 00:29:16,483
throughout the universe?

453
00:29:17,641 --> 00:29:20,300
(water splashing)

454
00:29:20,300 --> 00:29:22,843
We add some ink to the water.

455
00:29:25,890 --> 00:29:29,560
The water is space in the universe.

456
00:29:29,560 --> 00:29:32,760
The ink represents the elements.

457
00:29:32,760 --> 00:29:35,886
And so they're very unevenly spread

458
00:29:35,886 --> 00:29:38,440
throughout the water right now.

459
00:29:38,440 --> 00:29:41,170
Well, how do we make the distribution uniform?

460
00:29:41,170 --> 00:29:43,587
(soft music)

461
00:29:44,570 --> 00:29:49,570
(water splashing)
(stick clinking)

462
00:29:50,588 --> 00:29:51,930
(uplifting music)

463
00:29:51,930 --> 00:29:54,370
And now we have a uniform abundance.

464
00:29:54,370 --> 00:29:57,130
Everything is exactly the same everywhere,

465
00:29:57,130 --> 00:29:59,123
and that's exactly what we observed.

466
00:30:00,290 --> 00:30:01,160
Simionescu believes

467
00:30:01,160 --> 00:30:04,331
there must have been something that stirred the universe

468
00:30:04,331 --> 00:30:08,192
and made the distribution of the elements uniform.

469
00:30:08,192 --> 00:30:11,025
(dramatic music)

470
00:30:14,170 --> 00:30:17,220
Scientists have begun to learn more about where

471
00:30:17,220 --> 00:30:20,290
and how the elements that make up the various forms

472
00:30:20,290 --> 00:30:22,487
of matter originated.

473
00:30:22,487 --> 00:30:27,487
NASA's airborne observatory, SOFIA, is on the front lines,

474
00:30:28,280 --> 00:30:31,252
making groundbreaking observations.

475
00:30:31,252 --> 00:30:36,252
An infrared telescope, built into a modified Boeing 747,

476
00:30:36,530 --> 00:30:39,345
has made a series of discoveries.

477
00:30:39,345 --> 00:30:41,730
It flies into the stratosphere

478
00:30:41,730 --> 00:30:45,546
at an altitude of about 13 kilometers.

479
00:30:45,546 --> 00:30:48,950
There, it can observe celestial bodies free

480
00:30:48,950 --> 00:30:52,503
of the distortions caused by the Earth's atmosphere.

481
00:30:54,686 --> 00:30:57,640
On this day, observations were made

482
00:30:57,640 --> 00:31:01,090
of the bright, active galaxy M82,

483
00:31:01,090 --> 00:31:04,190
a site that produces chemical elements.

484
00:31:04,190 --> 00:31:07,180
In fact, not all of these elements existed

485
00:31:07,180 --> 00:31:08,833
at the beginning of the universe.

486
00:31:15,042 --> 00:31:17,810
(explosion blasting)

487
00:31:17,810 --> 00:31:19,730
Right after the Big Bang,

488
00:31:19,730 --> 00:31:24,521
there were primarily only two elements, hydrogen and helium.

489
00:31:24,521 --> 00:31:26,590
(gentle music)
(gas fizzing)

490
00:31:26,590 --> 00:31:29,020
Soon, gas began to coalesce

491
00:31:29,020 --> 00:31:31,473
into stars that burned fiercely.

492
00:31:33,500 --> 00:31:36,823
Inside those stars, elements were produced.

493
00:31:41,230 --> 00:31:43,730
Nuclear fusion took place,

494
00:31:43,730 --> 00:31:45,990
bonding hydrogen and helium

495
00:31:45,990 --> 00:31:50,083
to create other elements such as oxygen and calcium.

496
00:31:51,606 --> 00:31:54,540
(elements clanging)

497
00:31:54,540 --> 00:31:59,540
The life of many large stars ended in supernova explosions

498
00:31:59,650 --> 00:32:02,842
that scattered these elements across the universe.

499
00:32:02,842 --> 00:32:05,759
(mysterious music)

500
00:32:08,487 --> 00:32:09,830
This direction is the--

501
00:32:09,830 --> 00:32:12,980
On this day, they observed the element argon,

502
00:32:12,980 --> 00:32:15,340
which exists in the air on Earth

503
00:32:15,340 --> 00:32:17,483
and is used in fluorescent lights.

504
00:32:22,450 --> 00:32:26,233
When you have really intense star formation like this,

505
00:32:26,233 --> 00:32:28,260
these are factories, for all

506
00:32:28,260 --> 00:32:30,430
of the big elements that you want.

507
00:32:30,430 --> 00:32:32,930
(soft music)

508
00:32:33,860 --> 00:32:36,043
How were the elements created?

509
00:32:37,000 --> 00:32:39,033
Answering that question goes a long way

510
00:32:39,033 --> 00:32:41,650
towards solving the origin of life.

511
00:32:45,726 --> 00:32:48,007
The elements that comprise our bodies

512
00:32:48,007 --> 00:32:52,907
are all made inside stars as part of a nuclear burning

513
00:32:54,720 --> 00:32:56,770
during their lifetime.

514
00:32:56,770 --> 00:33:00,220
Calcium for your teeth, iron for the hemoglobin

515
00:33:00,220 --> 00:33:03,120
in your blood, and there are many, many other elements

516
00:33:03,120 --> 00:33:08,120
that you need, that human beings need to function.

517
00:33:08,720 --> 00:33:10,470
They're all produced in supernovae.

518
00:33:13,210 --> 00:33:15,670
Of the elements scattered through the universe

519
00:33:15,670 --> 00:33:19,730
by supernovae, some 80, including oxygen,

520
00:33:19,730 --> 00:33:23,773
carbon, and calcium are present in the human body.

521
00:33:25,110 --> 00:33:28,000
Martin Laming is studying how these elements

522
00:33:28,000 --> 00:33:31,379
are distributed after supernova explosions.

523
00:33:31,379 --> 00:33:33,879
(soft music)

524
00:33:36,330 --> 00:33:39,300
An X-Ray space telescope was used to observe

525
00:33:39,300 --> 00:33:42,923
the supernova remnant known as Cassiopeia A.

526
00:33:44,233 --> 00:33:48,940
Calcium is shown as green, iron as purple,

527
00:33:48,940 --> 00:33:51,194
and sulfur as yellow.

528
00:33:51,194 --> 00:33:54,030
All are essential to life,

529
00:33:54,030 --> 00:33:56,250
but when they were violently expelled,

530
00:33:56,250 --> 00:33:58,850
they ended up as separate clumps scattered

531
00:33:58,850 --> 00:34:00,113
across the universe.

532
00:34:01,370 --> 00:34:04,380
With such distance between the elements,

533
00:34:04,380 --> 00:34:06,073
life could never develop.

534
00:34:06,960 --> 00:34:08,112
Yet it did.

535
00:34:08,112 --> 00:34:08,945
(gentle music)

536
00:34:08,945 --> 00:34:11,842
Scientific findings are revealing how.

537
00:34:11,842 --> 00:34:12,675
(waves crashing)

538
00:34:12,675 --> 00:34:14,710
Another surprising discovery has been made

539
00:34:14,710 --> 00:34:18,080
about the elements that comprise the human body.

540
00:34:18,080 --> 00:34:20,410
We now know that the number of stars

541
00:34:20,410 --> 00:34:23,090
that produce chemical elements varied

542
00:34:23,090 --> 00:34:26,283
during different eras in the history of the universe.

543
00:34:27,220 --> 00:34:30,780
Piero Madau at the University of California

544
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studies the number of stars that were created

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in the ancient universe.

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The Hubble Space Telescope studied galaxies

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both near and far, crossing the full range of ages.

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These examinations were combined

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with various other observations,

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and the data for a large number of galaxies was analyzed.

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This shed light on how many stars were formed, and when.

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On the vertical axis of the graph,

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the higher positions reflect eras

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when star formation was most prevalent.

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On the horizontal axis, moving to the right takes us

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into the distant past.

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The data revealed that there was a peak era

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for star formation.

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We know now from observation that the peak

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of the star formation rate in the universe,

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occurs about 4 billion years after the Big Bang.

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And after that, the rate

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of star formation starts decreasing.

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There is less of a supply of fuel for a star to be born.

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(dramatic music)

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The universe 10 billion years ago

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was far different from the universe today.

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Stars were actively forming and collapsing,

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filling the early void and creating mass.

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10 billion years ago,

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that rate was 20 solar masses per year,

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30 times higher, 20, 30 times higher than it is today.

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So lots of new stars being born,

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lots of supernovae exploding,

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following the collapse of massive stars.

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It was a violent universe as opposed to quieter,

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calmer universe that we are used to see around today.

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(dramatic music)

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In the universe 10 billion years ago,

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here and there, gas was coalescing

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and forming stars at a pace dozens

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of times faster than today.

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Stars also died quickly, causing supernova explosions

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and creating vast quantities of chemical elements.

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It is believed that most of the elements

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that comprise our bodies were produced during this time,

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but how did those elements spread

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through the vastness of the universe?

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(supernova whooshing)

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(gentle music)

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Aurora Simionescu was especially interested

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in data showing the peak formation

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of chemical elements 10 billion years ago.

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It showed a remarkable correspondence

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to a separate set of observations by various countries.

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These were studies of the brightness of quasars

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across a variety of eras.

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On the vertical axis, higher positions

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indicate brighter light.

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In other words, times when black holes were more active.

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On the horizontal axis, moving to the right

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again takes us into the distant past.

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Black holes were most active during the same period,

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10 billion years ago.

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So for me, when I first learned about this,

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I also thought it's a very interesting coincidence.

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But then if you think about it, if both of these have

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to do with the amount of gas that you have,

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when you think about it more deeply,

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then you start to realize that actually,

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these two things are connected.

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Simionescu believes

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that this era 10 billion years ago is when elements

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were stirred up in the universe.

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The force that did the stirring

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was none other than the black hole.

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(dramatic music)

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Steven Allen at Stanford University

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has been studying black holes for many years.

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He too believes they were the driving force

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mixing the cosmic cocktail.

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The only mechanism that we could think of

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that could do this, that could throw the heavy elements

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out fast enough so that they would get far enough

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into intergalactic space is black holes.

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Supermassive black holes are incredibly efficient engines,

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at driving heavy elements out into intergalactic space.

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Is it possible to prove this hypothesis?

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In fact, there was a global effort

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to produce a computer simulation

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of the beginnings of the universe.

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One of those working on this project is David Barnes

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at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

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Based on observations, his simulation starts

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by distributing gas across a newborn universe.

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It then projects how the laws of gravity

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and electromagnetic force will transform

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the cosmos over the eons.

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(vibrant music)

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And then these days, there are many hundreds,

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possibly a few thousand people working

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on the IllustrisTNG simulations

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and looking at all aspects of science.

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These jets from black holes are critical for reproducing

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the universe we all see.

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Without these jets, galaxies would have more gas

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than we see, they'd have more stars than we see.

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(dramatic music)

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This is the universe 13 billion years ago,

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as simulated in the supercomputer.

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(soft string music)

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It was smaller than today and very dense.

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1.5 billion years later,

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gas steadily coalesces through its own gravity.

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(dramatic music)

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Bright white light comes from clusters

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of stars, the galaxies.

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Then 2 billion years after the formation of the universe,

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from the black holes at the center of galaxies,

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gigantic jets emerge.

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Let's take another look.

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(dramatic music)

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The length of the jets is 1.8 million light years,

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a colossal size, far larger

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than the galaxy containing the black hole.

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The gas that is thrust outward

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by the jets is incorporated into other galaxies.

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(soft music)
(clock ticking)

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So inside every, essentially, you've got a element

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of gas that we have in the simulation,

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we track 11 different chemical elements.

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And so every time you see a fast outflow,

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what you're seeing is the release of chemical elements

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from the very center of galaxies

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out into their sort of outer reaches.

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(soft music)

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Galaxies and black holes continued

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to form one after another.

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The powerful jets stirred the universe.

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The simulation confirms that the jets played a key role

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in mixing the chemical elements in the ancient universe.

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We have begun to understand how black holes

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in the early stages of the universe

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are linked to life on earth.

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(awe-inspiring music)

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Most of the chemical elements

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that our bodies are made of were created

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between 10 and 12 billion years ago,

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and they were spread into all of the corners of the universe

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because of the power of black holes.

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Well, probably I would say the supernovae are the mother

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and the black holes are the father of life in the universe.

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Let's take a grand voyage

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to those black holes that made possible our lives on earth.

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10 billion years ago, the universe was smaller,

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about 1/3 the size it is today.

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(stars whooshing)

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(dramatic music)

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(gentle music)

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(explosion blasting)

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Stars were born one after another,

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then died in massive explosions.

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(explosions blasting)

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The chemical elements produced by the stars

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were scattered unevenly through space.

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That's when events took place

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that would trigger the origin of life.

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(winds blustering)

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(gentle piano music)

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The key role was played by super massive black holes

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at the center of galaxies.

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These are not the dark celestial bodies suggested

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by their name.

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They are cloaked with gas that emits bright light

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and they spew forth large amounts of matter

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that takes the form of these jets.

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(ethereal music)

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The elements essential to life are stirred together

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and carry to the far reaches of the universe.

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This led, eventually, to life on earth.

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We are the stuff of stars,

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and our bodies contain remnants of the dramatic events

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that convulsed the universe 10 billion years ago.

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(dramatic music)

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This is an X-Ray observation satellite,

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slated for launch in 2022.

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It will have a sensitivity 30 times greater

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than existing telescopes.

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Aurora Simionescu expects its observations

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to revolutionize our understanding of black holes.

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For the future of my research,

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I hope that we will understand much better the role

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that black holes are playing

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in distributing the chemical elements

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00:45:51,610 --> 00:45:53,820
that are necessary for the existence of life

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throughout every corner of the universe.

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00:45:56,019 --> 00:45:58,610
(awe-inspiring music)

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Many mysteries still remain concealed

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within the black holes in space.

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These will be the keys to unlocking the secrets

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of the history of the universe,

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and the origins of life.

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{\an8}(soaring classical music)