Follow-up observations in Pandora’s cluster confirmed the second- and fourth-most distant galaxies ever seen, which are larger than other galaxies at such extreme distances.
Follow-up observations in Pandora’s cluster confirmed the second- and fourth-most distant galaxies ever seen, which are larger than other galaxies at such extreme distances.
The second- and fourth-most distant galaxies ever observed have been discovered in a region of space known as Pandora’s Cluster, or Abell 2744, using data from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). Following up on a deep field image of the area, an international team led by Penn State researchers confirmed the distance of these ancient galaxies and inferred their properties using new spectroscopic data — information about light emitted across the electromagnetic spectrum — from JWST. At nearly 33 billion light years away, these incredibly distant galaxies offer insights into how the earliest galaxies might have formed.
Unlike other galaxies confirmed at this distance that appear in images as red dots, the new galaxies are larger and appear like a peanut and a fluffy ball, according to the researchers. A paper describing the galaxies appears today (Nov. 13) in the journal Astrophysical Journal Letters.
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