Another record-breaking quasar with a black hole that’s *too* supermassive

Astronomers have found the most distant quasar yet seen, and, like a handful of others found at this distance, it presents a huge (literally) problem: The black hole powering it is far too big for how long it's been around.

The quasar is named after its coordinates on the sky, J031343.84−180636.4 (let's call it J0313 for short). It was found in a survey of the sky using Pan-STARRS, the Panoramic Survey Telescope and Rapid Response System, a relatively modest 1.8-meter telescope that nonetheless...