Hubble Ups Game To Compete With James Webb, Captures A Gravitationally Lensed Galaxy

While the world of astronomy remained awed by the new images from the revolutionary James Webb Space Telescope, we're here to remind you that it's too early to write off the fantastic Hubble Space Telescope.

Once again, Hubble has delivered a stunning view of the cosmos, but this time it's special. The galaxy in question is gravitationally lensed, making it look like a mirror image of the galaxy.

Hubble

What is gravitational lensing?

Quite simply, gravitational lensing occurs when giant cosmic bodies like a galaxy cluster "causes a sufficient curvature of spacetime to bend the course of light around it, as if by a lens," the press release explained.

Owing to this, the space object causing the curve is called a gravitational lens while the distorted background object is the one getting "lensed." In turn, multiple images of the same object may appear because of gravitational lensing, as seen in the image - with the galaxy appearing as a mirror image.

Galaxy cluster Abell 370 / Hubble

Also read: Hubble Telescope Captures A Stunning 'Sea Of Stars' In The Centre Of Milky Way

But this distortion has its benefits too! Scientists can view faint and hard-to-spot objects because of gravitational lensing.

Hubble Space Telescope comes with special powers to deal with lensed galaxies. Ground-based telescopes on Earth cannot detect far-off gravitational lenses because of the blurring effect produced by Earth's atmosphere.

Also read: Giant Galaxy With 'Cosmic Shells' Captured By Hubble: What Created These Shells?

Hubble

But Hubble's sensitivity and clarity allows it to see even the faintest and farthest gravitational lenses. Based on this, astronomers can better understand how stars are formed in early galaxies. With even sharper images and better details from James Webb Space Telescope, scientists hope to resolve the universe's many mysteries in the near-future.

Explained: What Is James Webb Telescope And How Different Is It From Hubble Telescope

What do you think about this stunning click by Hubble Space Telescope? Let us know in the comments below. For more in the world of technology and science, keep reading Indiatimes.com.

References

O¡¯Neill, M. (2022, July 18). Cosmic Lens Flair: Hubble Captures a Gravitationally Lensed Galaxy. SciTechDaily.