Galaxy Mergers and Supermassive Black Holes

Using state-of-the-art X-ray telescopes in orbit, I hunt for systems of merging galaxies in which there are pairs actively feeding supermassive black holes. These black holes, which reside at the centers of their respective galaxies and can reach masses of several hundred million to a few billion times the mass of the sun, are expected to consume vast quantities of gas and dust during the merger event. Due to this vast inflow of material from the galaxy to the black holes during the merger sequence, mergers may play a key role in the growth and evolution of these black holes over time...