The European Space Agency's Euclid space-based telescope, launched in 2024, has already released images of two of the most ancient quasars ever located. This pushes our observable universe's timeline back to when it was just 670 million years old, according to DW. This remarkable feat allows astrophysicists to examine the universe during its formative years, a period previously obscured by limited telescopic sensitivity.

Previous wide-field surveys offered only a constrained view of the early universe's quasar population. However, Euclid's enhanced sensitivity now reveals a far more numerous and earlier presence of these energetic objects. This stark contrast between prior observational capabilities and the true prevalence of active galactic nuclei during the cosmic dawn demands a fundamental re-evaluation.

Consequently, our understanding of the universe's reionization epoch and the rapid formation of supermassive black holes in its infancy will likely undergo significant revision. Euclid's initial data challenges established timelines for cosmic evolution, suggesting a more dynamic and accelerated early universe than previously theorized.

Key Discoveries in Early Universe Quasars

  • 31 — new quasars have been discovered in the early Universe through observations with the Euclid Space Telescope and ground-based facilities, including the Subaru Telescope, according to Subaru Telescope (2026).
  • 12 — of the newly discovered quasars are at a redshift of 7 or above, corresponding to the first 770 million years of the universe, according to Waseda University (2026).
  • 670 million years — marks the age of the universe when the light from the two earliest observed quasars originated, according to The Straits Times (2026).
  • 10 to 100 times — fainter are the quasars Euclid is capable of detecting compared to those found in previous wide-field surveys, according to Subaru Telescope (2026).
  • 7.77 — is the redshift of EUCL J172902.75+641018.1, one of the most distant quasars ever found, according to Subaru Telescope (2026).
  • 7.69 — is the redshift of EUCL J125308.55+705432.3, another record-breaking quasar, according to Subaru Telescope (2026).
  • 13 billion light-years — is the approximate distance from which the light of these two most distant quasars traveled, according to Subaru Telescope (2026).