James Webb Space Telescope has delivered stunning views of the "gravitationally distorted realms" of the El Gordo galaxy cluster, according to Space.com.
Credits
Image:
NASA, ESA, CSA
Science:
Jose M. Diego (IFCA), Brenda Frye (University of Arizona), Patrick Kamieneski (ASU), Tim Carleton (ASU), Rogier Windhorst (ASU)
Image Processing:
Alyssa Pagan (STScI), Jake Summers (ASU), Jordan C. J. D'Silva (UWA), Anton M. Koekemoer (STScI), Aaron Robotham (UWA), Rogier Windhorst (ASU)
Video:
Danielle Kirshenblat (STScI)
Credits
Image:
NASA, ESA, CSA
Science:
Jose M. Diego (IFCA), Brenda Frye (University of Arizona), Patrick Kamieneski (ASU), Tim Carleton (ASU), Rogier Windhorst (ASU)
Image Processing:
Alyssa Pagan (STScI), Jake Summers (ASU), Jordan C. J. D'Silva (UWA), Anton M. Koekemoer (STScI), Aaron Robotham (UWA), Rogier Windhorst (ASU)
Video:
Danielle Kirshenblat (STScI)
Category
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TechTranscript
00:00This infrared image taken by NASA's James Webb Space Telescope depicts El Gordo, a cluster
00:06of hundreds of galaxies that existed when the universe was 6.2 billion years old.
00:12This view displays a clear assortment of unusual distorted background galaxies that were suggested
00:17in previous Hubble images of the area.
00:23The El Gordo Galaxy Cluster is a classic example of gravitational lensing, where the cluster's
00:28gravity bends and distorts light from faraway objects behind it.
00:33Due to El Gordo's lensing, distant galaxies become brighter and appear larger, allowing
00:38us to see parts of the universe that would otherwise be too faint to observe.
00:43This lensing effect can also cause galaxies to appear duplicated or mirrored.
00:49One of the most prominent features is the bright red arc.
00:52Nicknamed El Enzuelo, or the fish hook, the light from this galaxy traveled for 10.6 billion
00:58years to reach Earth.
01:01Its unique red color is the result of dust from within the galaxy itself, as well as
01:06cosmological redshift, which refers to the redder hues from light waves that are stretched
01:10out due to their extreme increasing distance from us.
01:15The long pencil thin line is known as La Flocka, or the thin one.
01:20It is another lensed background galaxy whose light also took nearly 11 billion years to reach
01:25Earth.
01:27Not far from La Flocka is another lensed galaxy containing an image of a single red giant star
01:32nicknamed Coir.
01:34It's nearly impossible to see lensed red giant stars without the infrared technology
01:39and sensitivity of Webb.
01:41Coir is the first individual red giant star observed at a staggering distance of over 10
01:46billion light-years from Earth, and is the first of its kind spotted by Webb.
01:51This new image of El Gordo, a gateway to groundbreaking scientific discoveries, is unveiled, promising
01:57a wealth of new knowledge and insights into the captivating mysteries of our ever-expanding
02:02universe.