Hubble Telescope Discovers Numerous “Ghost” Stars in Giant Galaxies They wander like lost souls, with a dim, eerie light.
These stars are not gravitationally bound to any galaxy, according to Scitech Daily.
A recent infrared survey conducted by the Hubble Space Telescope revealed that these stars have been wandering for billions of years.
When did they get lost in the space between galaxies? The true origin of these solitary stars remains a mystery.
Many lonely stars roam in giant galaxy clusters – (Photo: SCITECH DAILY).
Thanks to the Hubble Telescope, astronomers now know about wandering star clusters. In fact, there isn’t even a feasible galaxy for these stars to call “home.”
The diffuse and dim light from these lonely stars contributes to the ghostly background illumination within the galaxy cluster.
The first clues about these solitary stars were discovered back in 1951. In fact, Hubble can now easily detect the light from these stars, which is only 1/10,000th of the light seen in the night sky from ground-based telescopes.
Understanding the origin of the light within galaxy clusters could provide astronomers with new insights into the history of these clusters.
A lingering question for astronomers is: How did these stars end up scattered throughout the galaxy cluster in the first place?
Some scientists suggest that these stars may have been ejected from their galaxy clusters, or they were thrown around following galaxy mergers. Others believe they were present early on during the formation of galaxy clusters billions of years ago.
Professor James Jee from Yonsei University in Seoul, South Korea, in a study published in the journal Nature, stated: “These stars have been homeless since the early stages of star cluster formation. We do not know exactly what caused them to become homeless stars. But somehow, they were created in large numbers in the early universe.”
“If we find the origin of these stars, we will understand the history of the entire galaxy cluster. At the same time, they could serve as traces of dark matter surrounding that galaxy cluster,” added Professor Hyungjin Joo from Yonsei University.
Dark matter is the invisible scaffolding of the universe, binding galaxies and galaxy clusters together.
Scientists hope that the capabilities and infrared sensitivity of NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope will significantly enhance the search for stars deep within galaxy clusters, thus helping to uncover many mysteries.
