A cosmic monster in formation captured by Hubble

The Hubble Space Telescope has captured a stunning image of a cosmic monster in the making. The image is a group of galaxies 8 billion light-years from Earth and is part of a project aimed at observing this type of structure.

The cluster is known as eMACS J1353.7+4329 and is located in the constellation of Canes Venatici and according to a statement from the European Space Agency (ESA), which manages Hubble with NASA, it consists of at least two groups of elliptical galaxies in the process of fusion.

In the image, the cosmic monster galaxies are represented by numerous elliptical orange formations with a bright central point. It is also possible to see other galactic formations scattered among the cluster as well as a bright star, with four dots in the right corner of the image.

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Gravitational lenses

This huge cosmic monster in the making works like a gravitational lens. Thanks to this effect, the oldest and most distant galaxies can be observed in greater detail. Gravitational inversion occurs when massive objects are in the foreground, in which case the merging of clusters distorts space-time and the light from distant objects in the background ends up distorting or amplifying together.

A celestial body such as a cluster of galaxies is large enough to distort space-time, causing the light path around the object to be bent distinctly like a large lens. The first signs of gravitational lensing are already visible in this image as bright arcs, which blend with several galaxies in eMACS J1353.7+4329.

European Space Agency, in a statement

In this image it is possible to clearly see indications that eMACS J1353.7+4329 is causing gravitational lensing. To the right of the brighter central galaxy it is possible to see streaks or arcs, being a distortion of the brightness of the background galaxy.

Observations of the cosmic monster have been made using Hubble’s Wide Field Camera 3 and the Advanced Camera for Surveys, allowing it to be observed at different wavelengths. The image is part of an initiative that plans to collect data and make observations of five exceptional galactic groups called “Monsters in the Making.” These objects observed by Hubble open space for James Webb to study them in greater detail.

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