Hubble and Keck jointly discover most distant galaxy
Posted: Mon, Feb 16, 2004, 8:30 PM ET (0130 GMT)
Astronomers using the Hubble Space Telescope and the Keck Observatory announced Sunday that they have discovered the most distant galaxy in the known universe, dating back to when the universe was less than a billion years old. Astronomers initially detected the object in images from Hubble of the region around the nearby galaxy cluster Abell 2218. The galaxy cluster acts as a gravitational lens, permitting astronomers to observe distant, faint objects. Followup observations by the 10-meter telescopes of the Keck Observatory determined the object had a redshift of approximately 7, corresponding to a distance from Earth of about 13 billion light-years. Astronomers said the light being observed from the object originated when the universe was only 750 million years old, around the time the first galaxies formed at the end of a "Dark Ages" after the Big Bang. The object is thought to be relatively small for a galaxy — only 2,000 light-years across — but very active in terms of star formation.
Astronomers using the Hubble Space Telescope and the Keck Observatory announced Sunday that they have discovered the most distant galaxy in the known universe, dating back to when the universe was less than a billion years old. Astronomers initially detected the object in images from Hubble of the region around the nearby galaxy cluster Abell 2218. The galaxy cluster acts as a gravitational lens, permitting astronomers to observe distant, faint objects. Followup observations by the 10-meter telescopes of the Keck Observatory determined the object had a redshift of approximately 7, corresponding to a distance from Earth of about 13 billion light-years. Astronomers said the light being observed from the object originated when the universe was only 750 million years old, around the time the first galaxies formed at the end of a "Dark Ages" after the Big Bang. The object is thought to be relatively small for a galaxy — only 2,000 light-years across — but very active in terms of star formation.
Related Links:
| <<previous article | next article>> |
|
news in brief
|
|
|
|
news links
|
|
Friday, April 25
Boeing reports progress on containing Starliner costs
Space News — 5:52 am ET (0952 GMT) Katalyst Space acquires Atomos to accelerate in-space services
Space News — 5:51 am ET (0951 GMT) Okapi raises 13 million euros to expand space traffic management suite
Space News — 5:51 am ET (0951 GMT) Hidden and hampered: elevating the Office of Commercial Space Transportation
Space News — 5:51 am ET (0951 GMT) Shenzhou-20 crewed spacecraft arrives at Tiangong space station
Space News — 5:51 am ET (0951 GMT) |
