ESA/HEIC: New mass map of a distant galaxy cluster

Find out the latest thinking about our universe.
Post Reply
User avatar
bystander
Apathetic Retiree
Posts: 21571
Joined: Mon Aug 28, 2006 2:06 pm
Location: Oklahoma

ESA/HEIC: New mass map of a distant galaxy cluster

Post by bystander » Thu Jul 24, 2014 5:56 pm

New mass map of a distant galaxy cluster is the most precise yet
ESA Hubble | 2014 Jul 24
Click to view full size image 1 or image 2
Astronomers using the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope have mapped the mass within a galaxy cluster more precisely than ever before. Created using observations from Hubble's Frontier Fields observing programme, the map shows the amount and distribution of mass within MCS J0416.1–2403, a massive galaxy cluster found to be 160 trillion times the mass of the Sun. The detail in this mass map was made possible thanks to the unprecedented depth of data provided by new Hubble observations, and the cosmic phenomenon known as strong gravitational lensing.

Measuring the amount and distribution of mass within distant objects in the Universe can be very difficult. A trick often used by astronomers is to explore the contents of large clusters of galaxies by studying the gravitational effects they have on the light from very distant objects beyond them. This is one of the main goals of Hubble's Frontier Fields, an ambitious observing programme scanning six different galaxy clusters — including MCS J0416.1–2403, the cluster shown in this stunning new image.

Large clumps of mass in the Universe warp and distort the space-time around them. Acting like lenses, they appear to magnify and bend light that travels through them from more distant objects. ...

Credit: NASA/ESA/Hubble, HST Frontier Fields
Acknowledgement: Mathilde Jauzac (Durham University, UK and Astrophysics & Cosmology Research Unit, South Africa) and Jean-Paul Kneib (École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Switzerland)

Mapping dark matter, 4.5 billion light years away
Royal Astronomical Society | Durham University, UK | 2014 Jul 24

Record Precision Achieved in Mass Map of Galaxy Cluster
Institute for Astronomy | University of Hawaii

Hubble Frontier Fields: a high-precision strong-lensing analysis of galaxy cluster
MACSJ0416.1-2403 using ∼200 multiple images
- Mathilde Jauzac et al
Know the quiet place within your heart and touch the rainbow of possibility; be
alive to the gentle breeze of communication, and please stop being such a jerk.
— Garrison Keillor

User avatar
Ann
4725 Å
Posts: 13371
Joined: Sat May 29, 2010 5:33 am

Re: ESA/HEIC: New mass map of a distant galaxy cluster

Post by Ann » Thu Jul 24, 2014 6:58 pm

That's a fantastic picture, particularly the annotated version. Wow.

Ann
Color Commentator

Post Reply