Subscribe now

Space

Astronomers are already unscrambling the warped galaxies seen by JWST

The first deep-field image from the James Webb Space Telescope is full of distant galaxies with their light warped by gravity, and astronomers are already using them to hunt dark matter

By Leah Crane

15 July 2022

New Scientist Default Image

The SMACS 0723 galaxy cluster

The firehose of James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) data has opened, and astronomers have begun to drink from it. Just days after the observatory’s first full-resolution image was released on 11 July, two groups of researchers have already analysed the data to recreate the structure of the galaxy cluster in the image.

The cluster, called SMACS 0723, is so massive that it warps space-time, bending and magnifying the light from the galaxies behind it in a process called gravitational lensing. JWST’s image of it …

To continue reading, subscribe today with our introductory offers

View introductory offers

No commitment, cancel anytime*

Offer ends 14th June 2023.

*Cancel anytime within 14 days of payment to receive a refund on unserved issues.

Inclusive of applicable taxes (VAT)

or

Existing subscribers

Sign in to your account