A team of researchers examined data taken by NASA's Infrared Astronomical Satellite (IRAS) in 1983 and identified hundreds of potential black holes.
Notes on verification
Confirmed by the peer-reviewed paper (Boorman et al. 2025, ApJ) and multiple independent outlets (NASA/JPL, NuSTAR/Caltech, Space.com, Live Science), though most reporting traces back to a single press release and study.
Sources
- A third of black holes in the Universe could be hiding from view | BBC Sky at Night Magazine (skyatnightmagazine.com)
- https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/how-many-black-holes-are-hiding-nasa-study-homes-in-on-answer/ (jpl.nasa.gov)
- https://nustar.caltech.edu/news/nustar250113 (nustar.caltech.edu)
- https://www.nasa.gov/missions/nustar/how-many-black-holes-are-hiding-nasa-study-homes-in-on-answer/ (nasa.gov)
- https://www.space.com/the-universe/black-holes/astronomers-find-hundreds-of-hidden-black-holes-and-there-may-be-billions-or-even-trillions-more (space.com)
- https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/1538-4357/ad8236 (iopscience.iop.org)
- https://arxiv.org/pdf/2410.07339 (arxiv.org)