In 2012, Large scale cluster survey (MACS), hubble space telescope (HST) discovered a pair of colliding galaxy clusters (MACS0416) eventually combine to form even larger clusters. Her MACS 0416 star cluster, located about 4.3 billion light-years from Earth, contains multiple gravitational lenses that allow astronomers to go back in time and observe galaxies that appeared when the universe was young. Masu.in new collaboration It’s the passing of the torch, the venerable Hubble astronaut and james webb space telescope (JWST) collaborated to conduct a very detailed study of MACS0416.
This cluster was the first in a series of ultra-detailed views commissioned in 2014 as part of an unprecedented project. frontier field program. The collaboration relied on large galaxy clusters to study gravitational lensing, a phenomenon originally predicted by Einstein’s theory of general relativity. Based on how the gravity of a massive object changes the curvature of spacetime around it, the program uses foreground galaxy clusters to magnify light from fainter, more distant objects in the background. Did.
The image taken is hubble MACS0416 was released in 2014 and Cluster lens and supernova investigation by Hubble (CLASH) It will help scientists observe the early Universe and map the distribution of dark matter.together Other ultra-deep field views These images, obtained by the Frontier Fields program, gave astronomers their deepest view of the universe to date. Also, hubble This was done as a pioneering mission to explore dimmer, more distant galaxies that existed in the early universe (about 1 billion years after the Big Bang).
One of JWST’s many goals is to build on this foundation using state-of-the-art infrared instruments to peer deeper into the early Universe.combine hubblepowerful optics webbInfrared imaging, the two space telescopes produced a composite image that shows the strengths of both observatories. The combined visible and infrared light in the 0.4-5 micron range of the near-infrared (NIR) spectrum provides one of the most comprehensive views of the universe ever obtained, revealing a wealth of detail. Become.
This includes many galaxies outside the cluster, as well as distant galaxies at different distances (and times). To indicate distance, the shortest wavelengths are color coded in blue, the longest wavelengths in red, and intermediate wavelengths in green. Blue galaxies were best detected by: hubble, And while many showed intense star formation, the redder galaxies webb. Some galaxies appear very red because they contain a lot of cosmic dust that absorbs light at the blue end of the spectrum.
Beyond aesthetics, the image shows several objects whose brightness changes over time (aka ephemeral objects), which was the goal of the campaign. To locate these objects in MACS0416, the team used three epochs obtained as part of the Prime Extragalactic Region for Reionization and Lensing Science (PEARLS) program – Guaranteed Time Observations (GTO) program 1176. observations were used. The aim of this program was to document the era of galaxy assembly and active galactic nuclei (AGN) growth in the early Universe, and included observations of seven gravitational lens clusters taken every few weeks.
These were combined with additional observations by the researchers. Canadian NIRISS unbiased cluster survey (CANUCS) Research Team. This yielded 14 transients across the field, 12 of which were located within three high-magnification galaxies that were likely individual stars or multi-star systems. The remaining two transients are in more moderately expanded background galaxies and may be supernovae. One of the highlights was a star system that was at least 4,000 times larger in a galaxy that existed about 3 billion years after the Big Bang.
The research team nicknamed this system “Mothra.” This was partly due to its extremely bright and magnifying nature, but also in keeping with another lensed star that the team had previously identified and nicknamed “Godzilla.” Mothra was also visible in her 2014 Hubble observations, but given that such a strong lensing effect is due to the coincidental positioning between the foreground galaxy and the background star, this is unlikely. is surprising. The researchers theorize that this is due to an additional lensing object (possibly a star cluster) in the foreground, estimated to be between 10,000 and 1 million solar masses.
Nevertheless, the fact that the research team was able to find so many transients from observations made within a relatively short period of time raises the possibility that many more transients will be found in this and other clusters. It suggests something. This is possible through regular monitoring. webb Continuing the mission planned for 10 years (with the possibility of extension to 20 years).of hubble Meanwhile, the mission has been in continuous operation for 30 years and shows no signs of slowing down.
References: ESA
