Fast-moving stars around an intermediate-mass black hole in Omega Centauri

Understand

Black holes have been found over a wide range of masses, from stellar remnants with masses of 5-150 solar masses (Msun), to those found at the centers of galaxies with $M>10^5$ Msun.

• However, only a few debated candidate black holes exist between 150 and $10^5$ Msun.
• Determining the population of these intermediate-mass black holes is an important step towards understanding supermassive black hole formation in the early universe.
• Several studies have claimed the detection of a central black hole in $\omega$ Centauri, the Milky Way's most massive globular cluster.