The James Webb Space Telescope has recently discovered a new ghostly phenomenon located 10 billion light-years away from Earth.
Through the “gravitational lensing” effect created by the galaxy cluster MACS J0138.0-2155, scientists have uncovered an intriguing object that appears in multiple images as seen from Earth.
This object is a Type Ia supernova named Encore, and the galaxy containing it is known as MRG-M0138, situated 10 billion light-years from our planet.
Supernova Encore within galaxy MRG-M0138, 10 billion light-years from Earth, appearing as two curved light trails of different lengths – (Photo: NASA/ESA/CSA).
This means that the light from these objects – the very thing that creates the images we see – has traveled for billions of years through space and time to reach the telescope orbiting our planet.
Not only is this discovery fascinating due to its ancient nature, but it also provides a remarkably eerie view thanks to the gravitational lensing of MACS J0138.0-2155.
Gravitational lensing can be understood as a cosmic magnifying glass, typically involving large galaxy clusters that obstruct the line of sight between Earth and a more distant object, thereby amplifying those objects by bending space-time and distorting their light.
Cosmic magnifying glasses are always complex and irregular structures, which can scatter light along different paths, causing the objects behind them to appear in multiple different versions.
The ancient galaxy MRG-M0138 manifests in as many as five different images.
However, the most intriguing aspect is that the supernova Encore – an ancient stellar explosion – has appeared as two distinct images.
The first image was captured by the Hubble Space Telescope in 2016 and was referred to as the supernova Requiem, appearing as a ghostly crescent of light.
In November, images from James Webb revealed that this crescent of light has a new companion, named Encore.
However, the research team, led by Dr. Justin Pierel from the Space Telescope Science Institute and Dr. Andrew New Man from the Carnegie Institution for Science (USA), determined that Requiem and Encore are actually one and the same. Hence, they refer to both incarnations by the collective name Encore.
Furthermore, calculations indicate that a “ghost” third image from Encore is expected to appear before the eyes of Earthlings around the year 2035, in a currently empty region of the sky.
The light forming each image will follow different paths, resulting in them reaching Earth with varying delays.
This duplication becomes even more unique as Encore is a Type Ia supernova, which is a powerful, mysterious, and rare type of supernova.
Scientists are also eagerly anticipating the year 2023, as the third image of Encore, expected to be just as clear and sharp as the previous two, could provide a new measurement of the Hubble constant, which indicates the rate of expansion of the universe.
