Pan of Einstein Ring: Distant Galactic Light | Hubble Space Telescope

Pan of Einstein Ring: Distant Galactic Light | Hubble Space Telescope

In this image, we are looking at a very distant galaxy that lies 19.5 billion light-years from Earth. A much closer luminous red galaxy that is a (relatively) small 2.7 billion light-years away is also present. Furthermore, there is a third galaxy that appears to be fairly close to the second. 

The central bright dot in this image is one of the closer galaxies, known by the lengthy—but informative—name of SDSS J020941.27+001558.4 (galaxy names in this format provide precise information about their location in the sky). The other bright dot above it—that appears to be intersecting a curving crescent of light—is SDSS J020941.23+001600.7, the second closer galaxy. And finally, that curving crescent of light itself is the ‘lensed’ light from the very distant galaxy. This is known as HerS J020941.1+001557. It is an interesting example of a phenomenon known as an Einstein ring.

Image Description: A field full of distant galaxies on a dark background. Most of the galaxies are very small, but there are a few larger galaxies and some stars where detail can be made out. In the very center there is an elliptical galaxy with a brightly glowing core and a broad disc. A reddish, warped ring of light, thicker at one side, surrounds its core. A small galaxy intersects the ring as a bright dot.

Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA, H. Nayyeri, L. Marchetti, J. Lowenthal, N. Bartmann  

Duration: 30 seconds

Release Date: Dec. 22, 2023

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