New NASA Telescope Helps Astronomers Determine Distances to Galaxies and Galaxy Clusters
October 31, 2023
The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has provided astronomers with valuable insights into the formation and evolution of galaxies in the early universe. According to a recent Canadian-led study, the telescope has helped measure distances to nearly 200 galaxies and galaxy clusters.
One of the first images released to the public by the JWST captured the breathtaking view of at least 7,000 galaxies in a deep field. This rich image has become a valuable resource for astronomers studying how galaxies change over time.
The study, conducted by a team of researchers from the University of Montreal, analyzed the galactic distances in the image. They were able to identify huge collections of stars located up to 10 billion light-years away from Earth, providing a glimpse into the universe’s early days.
“These clusters represent ideal targets for future studies to better understand how galaxies and the clusters they inhabit have evolved,” the researchers stated in a press release.
The JWST’s mission is to explore the universe’s changes since the Big Bang. Astronomers still have many questions about the emergence of light, the formation of the first stars, and the birth of galaxies. The $10 billion telescope, launched by NASA in December 2021, is equipped with powerful instruments including the Canadian NIRISS, which specializes in gathering light signatures from distant stars and galaxies.
Lead author Gaël Noirot, a postdoctoral researcher at Saint Mary’s University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, highlighted the importance of NIRISS in the study. “NIRISS is perfect for doing this because it can measure the redshifts of hundreds of galaxies at once,” Noirot said. “Our recently published study will be a valuable resource for the astronomical community and open up new avenues of research.”
The study also revealed new galaxies in the SMACS 0723 galaxy cluster, shedding light on how these structures change under the influence of dark matter. Dark matter, which makes up about 80% of the universe’s mass, affects the rate of expansion, but it can only be observed through its gravitational effects.
Additionally, the researchers discovered three objects with greater-than-normal densities in the SMACS 0723 cluster, indicating the presence of three newly found galaxy clusters situated roughly eight to 10 billion light-years away from Earth. Of particular interest is the “Sparkler Galaxy,” which is nine billion light-years away and may host the universe’s first star clusters.
“The fact that the Sparkler does not live alone, but is a member of a family of galaxies, has important implications for how first star clusters formed after the Big Bang,” commented study co-author Marcin Sawicki, a Canada Research Chair at Saint Mary’s University.
The study authors, who are part of the Canadian NIRISS Unbiased Cluster Survey, plan to continue using the instrument in JWST’s second year of observations in order to delve even deeper into the universe and make further discoveries.
The findings of this study were published in the October 2023 issue of the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. The JWST continues to provide valuable data that pushes the boundaries of our understanding of the universe and its origins.