Copenhagen, Denmark - Researchers from the University of Copenhagen have become the first to witness the formation of three of the universe's most ancient galaxies, which date back over 13 billion years.
Observing the Creation of Galaxies
Using the James Webb Space Telescope, the team from the university's Niels Bohr Institute observed the birth of the trio of galaxies, which existed between 13.3 and 13.4 billion years ago.
The team was able to detect the signals of enormous amounts of gas accumulating and feeding into a proto-galaxy, which was in the process of growing and forming, as reported in the journal Science.
While this is how galaxies are thought to have formed according to theories and computer simulations, it had never before been directly observed until now.
"You could say these are the first direct images of galaxies being born," said Professor Kasper Elm Heintz, leader of the research team.
The Early Universe
The researchers estimate that the birth of this trio of galaxies occurred around 400-600 million years after the Big Bang, when the universe was just 3-4% of its current age.
"In the first few hundred million years after the Big Bang, the first stars started to form and then stars and gas started to come together to form galaxies," said Professor Darach Watson, part of the research team.
Summary
This groundbreaking discovery provides direct evidence for the formation and evolution of galaxies in the early stages of the universe. The observations made using the James Webb Telescope have revolutionized our understanding of the cosmos and its origins.