![]() ![]() Ultimately, Webb’s upcoming observations will help astronomers better understand how galaxies form and grow in the early universe. This might lead to more accurate models of galaxies that existed at cosmic “spring,” when galaxies were sprouting tiny “buds” of new growth, actively interacting and merging, and had yet to develop into larger spirals. ![]() Webb’s highly detailed image may help researchers measure the ages and masses of star clusters within these distant galaxies. They are much clumpier and more irregular. The galaxies in this scene that are farthest away – the tiniest galaxies that are located well behind the cluster – look nothing like the spiral and elliptical galaxies observed in the local universe. Because this galaxy is so magnified and its individual star clusters are so crisp, researchers will be able to study it in exquisite detail, which wasn’t previously possible for galaxies this distant. Draw a line between its “wings” to roughly match up its star clusters, mirrored top to bottom. The long, thin ladybug-like galaxy is flecked with pockets of star formation. One galaxy speckled with star clusters appears near the bottom end of the bright central star’s vertical diffraction spike – just to the right of a long orange arc. Individual “pods” of star formation practically bloom within some of the most distant galaxies – the clearest, most detailed views of star clusters in the early universe so far. Very diffuse galaxies appear like collections of loosely bound dandelion seeds aloft in a breeze. Webb has refined the level of detail we can observe throughout this field. Others appear scattered by interactions with other galaxies, leaving trails of stars behind them. Not all galaxies in this field are mirrored – some are stretched. Webb’s image has fully revealed their bright cores, which are filled with stars, along with orange star clusters along their edges. These are lensed galaxies – each individual galaxy is shown twice in one arc. The combined mass of the galaxies and dark matter act as a cosmic telescope, creating magnified, contorted, and sometimes mirrored images of individual galaxies.Ĭlear examples of mirroring are found in the prominent orange arcs to the left and right of the brightest cluster galaxy. Bound together by gravity in a galaxy cluster, they are bending the light from galaxies that appear in the vast distances behind them. High-resolution imaging from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope combined with a natural effect known as gravitational lensing made this finely detailed image possible.įirst, focus on the galaxies responsible for the lensing: the bright white elliptical galaxy at the center of the image and smaller white galaxies throughout the image. Thousands of galaxies flood this near-infrared image of galaxy cluster SMACS 0723. These are images of background galaxies that have been stretched and distorted by the foreground galaxy cluster. They follow invisible concentric circles that curve around the center of the image. There are also many thin, long, orange arcs. In the center of the image, between 4 o’clock and 6 o’clock in the bright star’s spikes, are several bright, white galaxies. It has eight blue, long diffraction spikes. Some look as large as the galaxies that appear next to them.Ī very bright star is slightly off center. Most appear blue with diffraction spikes, forming eight-pointed star shapes. In front of the galaxies are several foreground stars. ![]() Most appear as fuzzy ovals, but a few have distinctive spiral arms. Some are shades of orange, others are white. Thousands of small galaxies appear across the image. They include foreground stars, galaxies in a galaxy cluster, and distorted background galaxies behind the galaxy cluster. This image shows many overlapping objects at various distances. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |