Skip to content

SciTech

Newly discovered mature galaxy cluster, revised big bang theory?

by Tamara Croes 10 Mar 2011
Newly discovered mature galaxy cluster, revised big bang theory?

Image Credit European Southern Observatory (ESO)

Scientists working from the European Southern Observatory (ESO) in Chile have recently discovered the furthest mature cluster of galaxies away from us which we can still see. From the available data, it seems that our ideas about the 'Big Bang' when the universe was created might have to be adapted.

The apparent maturity of this recently discovered cluster of galaxies was not at all what scientists were expecting. It is quite unusual to discover great clusters of galaxies at any rate. But most of the distant clusters of galaxies that have been recorded are young and still in the formation process, whereas this particular cluster seems to be developing passively, not actively.

Dr Raphael Gobat of the Laboratoire Paris-AIM-Saclay in France and his international team discovered a cluster of galaxies called CL J1449+0856 which seems to be from the earlier time of the Big Bang, at about 1/4th of the age the universe is thought to be now, actually about 3 billion years 'young', but even so it seems to be settled down.

If the Big Bang theory is correct, this cluster should be young and still forming stars. But it is sending out X-rays on a frequency which shows a hot cloud of gas trapped in between the galaxies, which is a typical sign of a mature galaxy. A young galaxy would not have had the time to trap enough gas to cause this signature. Both the NASA/ESA Hubble telescope and ESO's Very Large Telescope, or VLT, were used to observe the cluster. The data gathered thus far seem to indicate that the stars in the galaxies are at least a billion years old.

The cluster was first detected by the Spitzer telescope as a distant group of red objects. The distance to this particular cluster was measured by splitting up the light coming from the object (with a spectrograph) into its component colors. By measuring the redshift, which is how much the red light on the scale has shifted compared to now (the wavelength of the light increases as the universe expands), scientists can measure how 'old' the light is that is coming off the object, determining its age by the speed of light, which is about 300 million meters/second. More research is obviously needed to determine whether this mature cluster is a 'rare occurrence' or not.

Further reading: The Most Distant Mature Galaxy Cluster


Trending Eco-Friendly Clothing

Love My Planet Women's Relaxed Fit Hoodie
Earth
Quick Add
Close
Notify me
Notify me
Love My Planet Women's Relaxed Fit Hoodie
Love My Planet women's eco-friendly relaxed fit hoodieSize Guide Centimeters 8 10 12 14 16 18 Bust 84 88 92 97 103 108 Waist 66 70 75 80 85 91 Hips 91 95 99 104 109 116 Bust: Measure around the fullest part of...
£38.00
£38.00
Close
Notify me
Notify me
Penguins Hate Push-Ups Men's Pullover Hoodie
Earth
Quick Add
Close
Notify me
Notify me
Penguins Hate Push-Ups Men's Pullover Hoodie
Penguins Hate Push-Ups men's eco-friendly pullover HoodieSize Guide Centimeters XS S M L XL XXL Height 171 175 179 183 189 195 Chest 86 93 99 104 116 129 Waist 71 76 81 89 99 112 Chest: Measure all round your chest just below...
£38.00
£38.00
Close
Notify me
Notify me
Lightning Bolt Kids Long Sleeve T-Shirt
Earth
Quick Add
Close
Notify me
Notify me
Notify me
Lightning Bolt Kids Long Sleeve T-Shirt
Lightning Bolt kids eco-friendly long sleeve t-shirtSize Guide Centimeters 3-4yrs 5-6yrs 7-8yrs 9-10yrs 11-12yrs Height 98 112 125 136 147 Chest 60 66 70 75 84 Chest: Measure all around your chest just below your armpits. Height: Your natural height If you fall between...
£18.00
£18.00
Close
Notify me
Notify me
Notify me
Union Jack Tote Bag
Earth
Quick Add
Close
Notify me
Notify me
Union Jack Tote Bag
Union Jack eco-friendly colour tote bagProduct Specification Organic Cotton Tote Bag. Twill Weave (170gsm). 37 x 42 cm (7cm gusset.) Made in India / Designed on the Isle of Wight. Wash Cool, Hang Dry.
£16.00
£16.00
Close
Notify me
Notify me
Prev Post
Next Post

Eco-Friendly Shop

Women's Clothing

Eco-Friendly Clothing for Women Our online shop offers a wide range of sustainable women’s clothing products, including t-shirts, hoodies, vests, sweaters, shorts, and...
Shop Now

Men's Clothing

Eco-Friendly Clothing for Men Our online shop offers a wide range of sustainable men’s clothing products, including t-shirts, hoodies, vests, sweaters, shorts, and...
Shop Now

Kids Clothing

Eco-Friendly Clothes for Kids Our online shop offers a wide range of sustainable kids clothing products, including t-shirts, hoodies and jumpers. Our garments...
Shop Now
Someone recently bought a
[time] ago, from [location]

Thanks for subscribing!

This email has been registered!

Shop the look

Choose Options

Earth Times
Sign up for exclusive updates, new arrivals & insider only discounts

Recently Viewed

Edit Option
Back In Stock Notification
this is just a warning
Login
Shopping Cart
0 items

Before you leave...

Take 20% off your first order

20% off

Enter the code below at checkout to get 20% off your first order

CODESALE20

Continue Shopping