Topic: Galaxies & Cosmology
JWST Catches the Re-lighting of the Universe

JWST Catches the Re-lighting of the Universe

There are certain key questions that go hand in hand with mapping the changing nature of Dark Energy.  For instance, we’re looking to the early universe to see when the first galaxies came to light and how fast they and other structures grew into systems we might see in our modern universe. And while DESI, Euclid, and SphereX are out there mapping how structures evolved, it’s JWST that is showing us how they formed. Prior to JWST’s annoyingly early Christmas Day launch - for which I remain bitter - we had thought galaxies started to light up around a billion years after the universe...

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Gaia Watches the Universe Form

Gaia Watches the Universe Form

Credit: ESA/Gaia/DPAC; Lucy Reading-Ikkanda/Simons Foundation; K. Storey-Fisher et al. 2024 In trying to understand our universe, theorists can build models that describe how the universe formed as a mostly, but not completely, smooth distribution of matter and energy...

Galactic Death may not be Permanent

Galactic Death may not be Permanent

False-colour JWST image of a small fraction of the GOODS South field, with JADES-GS-z7-01-QU highlighted. Credit: JADES Collaboration In a paper in Nature, with Tobias Looser as the first author, researchers discuss a galaxy cataloged as JADES-GS-z7-01-QU. This...

Galaxies are Born Bright

Galaxies are Born Bright

This image from Webb’s NIRCam (Near-Infrared Camera) instrument shows a portion of the GOODS-North field of galaxies. At the lower right, a pullout highlights the galaxy GN-z11, which is seen at a time just 430 million years after the Big Bang. One prominent...

Black Holes Formed Before Stars

Black Holes Formed Before Stars

An illustration of a magnetic field generated by a supermassive black hole in the early universe, showing turbulent plasma outflows that help turn nearby gas clouds into stars. New findings suggest this process might be responsible for accelerated star formation in...

Unexpected Galaxy Photobombs Cluster

Unexpected Galaxy Photobombs Cluster

A color-composite image of PEARLSDG made with JWST NIRCAM data. Individual stars are visible as small points of light in the image. Its somewhat dull color and lack of many bright stars is consistent with its old age and lack of ongoing star formation. Credit: Image...

Quasars Spotted Blowing Away Gas

Quasars Spotted Blowing Away Gas

Artist’s impression of an outflow of molecular gas from the quasar J2054-0005. Credit: ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO) Gas dynamics are more than a little complicated no matter where you look. The dynamics of gas in and around forming galaxies makes is particularly...