Latest news with #KiDSJ0842
Economic Times
a day ago
- Science
- Economic Times
Dinosaur in the space: Astronomers discover ancient galaxy untouched for 7 billion years
Astronomers have confirmed the discovery of KiDS J0842+0059, a rare, ancient galaxy that has remained virtually unchanged for over 7 billion years. This "cosmic fossil," located 3 billion light-years away, offers a glimpse into the early universe, having experienced minimal interaction with other galaxies. Its pristine state allows researchers to study the formation and evolution of the first galaxies. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Astronomers have confirmed the discovery of a rare, ancient galaxy that has remained virtually unchanged for over 7 billion years, offering a rare glimpse into the early universe The galaxy , known as KiDS J0842+0059, is being hailed as a 'cosmic fossil' due to its pristine and undisturbed state. Researchers say it has experienced little to no interaction with other galaxies since its formation, allowing it to retain its original structure.A cosmic fossil is a galaxy that has managed to remain unchanged by collisions and interactions with other galaxies. That means they can act as pristine time capsules to help astronomers study earlier galaxies.'We have discovered a galaxy that has been 'perfectly preserved' for billions of years, a true archaeological find that tells us how the first galaxies were born and helps us understand how the universe has evolved to this day,' said Crescenzo Tortora, co-leader of the research team from Italy's National Institute for Astrophysics (INAF).The findings were made using observations from several leading instruments, including the Large Binocular Telescope (LBT) and the Very Large Telescope (VLT), which allowed astronomers to confirm the galaxy's compact size and stellar mass, approximately 100 billion times that of the J0842+0059 was first identified in 2018 during the Kilo-Degree Survey (KiDS). More recent high-resolution imaging from LBT provided a clearer picture of the galaxy's structure, ruling out prior uncertainties.'This is the first time that we have been able to do this with such high-resolution data for a galaxy relic so far away,' said Chiara Spiniello, a researcher at the University of Oxford and a member of the research galaxy, located 3 billion light-years from Earth, has shown almost no signs of star formation over billions of years, which is unusual for galaxies of its size. Most galaxies continue to evolve through collisions and mergers, which trigger bursts of new star formation. In contrast, KiDS J0842+0059 appears to have remained dormant and isolated.'Fossil galaxies are like the dinosaurs of the universe,' Tortora said. 'Studying them allows us to understand in which environmental conditions they formed and how the most massive galaxies we see today evolved.'The team compared KiDS J0842+0059 to NGC 1277, another well-known relic galaxy located much closer to Earth in the Perseus Cluster. Both share compact structures and similar characteristics, but KiDS J0842+0059 is far more distant, making it a rare observational researchers hope that future observations, particularly with the upcoming Euclid space telescope, will help identify more fossil galaxies and further refine models of galaxy formation and cosmic evolution.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Science
- Yahoo
Astronomers discover a galaxy frozen in time for billions of years: 'Fossil galaxies are like the dinosaurs of the universe'
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Astronomers have discovered a distant galaxy that is a "cosmic fossil" which has remained "frozen in time" for billions of years. Just as dinosaur fossils here on Earth are used to probe the evolution of life, this cosmic fossil in the form of the galaxy KiDS J0842+0059 could be used to understand cosmic evolution. A cosmic fossil is a galaxy that has managed to remain unchanged by collisions and interactions with other galaxies. That means they can act as pristine time capsules to help astronomers study earlier galaxies. Recent research conducted using data from the Large Binocular Telescope (LBT) has revealed that this galaxy has remained unchanged for around 7 billion years. "We have discovered a galaxy that has been 'perfectly preserved' for billions of years, a true archaeological find that tells us how the first galaxies were born and helps us understand how the universe has evolved to this day," team co-leader and National Institute for Astrophysics (INAF) researcher Crescenzo Dove said in a statement. "Fossil galaxies are like the dinosaurs of the universe: studying them allows us to understand in which environmental conditions they formed and how the most massive galaxies we see today evolved." KiDS J0842+0059, located 3 billion light-years away from Earth, was discovered in 2018 by the KiDS (Kilo Degree Survey). Images of the galaxy provided by the Very Large Telescope Survey Telescope (VST) allowed astronomers to measure the size and mass of KiDS J0842+0059. These measurements were perfected by the Very Large Telescope (VLT) and its X-Shooter instrument. This revealed that KiDS J0842+0059 has a stellar mass of around one hundred billion times that of the sun, but is more compact than similar mass galaxies. It was also discovered that KiDS J0842+0059 has lacked star formation for much of its life. All this hinted toward it being a fossil galaxy. To remove uncertainties around the characteristics of KiDS J0842+0059, particularly its size and structure, this team set about using the adaptive optics system of the LBT to get sharper images of this relic galaxy. This resulted in images with ten times the detail of the KiDS provided images. "Data from the LBT have allowed us to confirm that KiDS J0842+0059 is indeed compact and therefore a true galaxy relic with a shape similar to NGC 1277 and the compact galaxies we observe in the early stages of the universe," team member Chiara Spiniello, a researcher at the University of Oxford, said. "This is the first time that we have been able to do this with such high-resolution data for a galaxy relic so far away." NGC 1277 is another example of a rare stunted galactic fossil, which is located in the Perseus Cluster around 240 million light-years away, meaning it is much closer to home than KiDS J0842+0059. The fact that there are galaxies like NGC 1277 and KiDS J0842+0059 out there indicates some galaxies can form rapidly, stay compact and remain dormant for billions of years by dodging collisions with other galaxies. Related Stories: — How dark energy could relieve 'Hubble tension' and galaxy headaches — Astronomers see the 1st stars dispel darkness 13 billion years ago at 'Cosmic Dawn' — 'Our understanding of the universe may be incomplete': James Webb Space Telescope data suggests we need a 'new cosmic feature' to explain it all "Studying these cosmic fossils helps us reconstruct the formation history of the nuclei of today's massive galaxies, which — unlike relic galaxies — have undergone fusion processes, accreting matter right around those first compact galaxies from which they originated," Tortora said. "With cutting-edge technologies such as adaptive optics and the support of telescopes such as the LBT, we can improve our understanding of this type of galaxy. "In the near future, we will take a step forward, aiming to search for, confirm, and study new relic galaxies through the unique quality and high-resolution data of the Euclid space telescope." The team's research was published in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.
Time of India
2 days ago
- Science
- Time of India
Dinosaur in the universe: Astronomers discover ancient galaxy untouched for 7 billion years
Astronomers have confirmed the discovery of a rare, ancient galaxy that has remained virtually unchanged for over 7 billion years, offering a rare glimpse into the early universe . The galaxy, known as KiDS J0842+0059, is being hailed as a 'cosmic fossil' due to its pristine and undisturbed state. Researchers say it has experienced little to no interaction with other galaxies since its formation, allowing it to retain its original structure. Cosmic fossil by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 税金滞納による差し押さえ車両 沖縄 高級外車 価格一覧 中古車 | 検索広告 Undo A cosmic fossil is a galaxy that has managed to remain unchanged by collisions and interactions with other galaxies. That means they can act as pristine time capsules to help astronomers study earlier galaxies. 'We have discovered a galaxy that has been 'perfectly preserved' for billions of years, a true archaeological find that tells us how the first galaxies were born and helps us understand how the universe has evolved to this day,' said Crescenzo Tortora, co-leader of the research team from Italy's National Institute for Astrophysics (INAF). Live Events The findings were made using observations from several leading instruments, including the Large Binocular Telescope (LBT) and the Very Large Telescope (VLT), which allowed astronomers to confirm the galaxy's compact size and stellar mass, approximately 100 billion times that of the Sun. KiDS J0842+0059 was first identified in 2018 during the Kilo-Degree Survey (KiDS). More recent high-resolution imaging from LBT provided a clearer picture of the galaxy's structure, ruling out prior uncertainties. 'This is the first time that we have been able to do this with such high-resolution data for a galaxy relic so far away,' said Chiara Spiniello, a researcher at the University of Oxford and a member of the research team. The galaxy, located 3 billion light-years from Earth, has shown almost no signs of star formation over billions of years, which is unusual for galaxies of its size. Most galaxies continue to evolve through collisions and mergers, which trigger bursts of new star formation. In contrast, KiDS J0842+0059 appears to have remained dormant and isolated. 'Fossil galaxies are like the dinosaurs of the universe,' Tortora said. 'Studying them allows us to understand in which environmental conditions they formed and how the most massive galaxies we see today evolved.' The team compared KiDS J0842+0059 to NGC 1277, another well-known relic galaxy located much closer to Earth in the Perseus Cluster. Both share compact structures and similar characteristics, but KiDS J0842+0059 is far more distant, making it a rare observational target. The researchers hope that future observations, particularly with the upcoming Euclid space telescope, will help identify more fossil galaxies and further refine models of galaxy formation and cosmic evolution.
