If you look closely at this image, you might think that there are three layers.
A new picture from the James Webb Space Telescope shows three copies of the same cluster of galaxies hosting supernovae.
The cosmic triplet is not an artifact of a faulty telescope, but a natural oddity called “gravitational lensing.”(opens in new tab)” was predicted more than a century ago in Albert Einstein’s General Theory of Relativity.
Webb Telescope Mistake Leads to Amazing Discovery
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How does gravitational lensing work?
Gravitational lensing occurs when a celestial body has such a strong gravitational pull that it distorts time and space around it. NASA often uses the analogy of a bowling ball placed on a foam mattress or trampoline to explain how the fabric of space-time bends. Light that otherwise travels in a straight curve will be distorted as it travels through distorted space-time.
Gravitational lensing can even duplicate objects, allowing funhouse mirrors to create multiple irregular images.
In this case, the cluster RX J2129(opens in new tab)Located 3.2 billion light-years from Earth in the constellation Aquarius, , functions like a giant magnifying glass in the sky. This natural phenomenon allows scientists to see even more distant objects in space, making them appear brighter. The extra prescription strength of gravitational lensing will help expand the field of view of Webb, the world’s most powerful space telescope, to see even earlier galaxies.
Gravitational lensing can even duplicate objects, allowing funhouse mirrors to create multiple irregular images.
Astronomers are now adept at finding the clear effects of gravitational lensing, but that wasn’t always the case. Forty years ago, concentric arcs of light and stretched celestial bodies could be downright confusing. In 1987, a giant blue arc thought to be hundreds of trillion miles long was first considered one of the largest objects ever detected in the universe. The arc was discovered near galaxy cluster Abell 370, and another similar object was discovered near galaxy cluster 2242-02.
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Later that year, scientists at Stanford University and the National Optical Observatory in Arizona sorted out that they were actually optical illusions distorted by Abell 370.(opens in new tab) of Einstein’s theory titled “Vast Cosmic Objects Downgraded to Mirages”.
What is a “type Ia” supernova?
Supernovae within the Lenticular Cluster include white dwarfs.
Credits: ESA / NASA / CSA / P. Kelly
The supernova featured in the new image was first spotted using the Hubble Space Telescope. During these Hubble observations, researchers suspected it was a distant example of a so-called Type Ia supernova.(opens in new tab)They include white dwarfs. This is a stellar remnant and cannot burn nuclear fuel at its core. The white dwarf then strips stellar matter from nearby stars.
When a feeding star reaches about 1.4 times the mass of the Sun, it cannot support its own weight and explodes.
There’s a reason scientists revisit using the Webb telescope, a joint effort of NASA, the European Space Agency, and the Canadian Space Agency. These supernovae have fairly consistent luminosities, making them useful measurement tools for astronomers. The distance from Earth of a type Ia supernova is proportional to its brightness or thinness.
The supernova light could help astronomers get a sense of how RX J2129 enhances background objects. And, in turn, that information about its expansion strength can give researchers a sense of just how big the galaxy cluster is.
