This is a Hubble Space Telescope image of the farthest spectroscopically confirmed galaxy observed to date (inset). It was identified in this Hubble image of a field of galaxies in the CANDELS survey (Cosmic Assembly Near-infrared Deep Extragalactic Legacy Survey). NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope also observed the unique galaxy. The W. M. Keck Observatory was used to obtain a spectroscopic redshift (z=7.7), extending the previous redshift record. Measurements of the stretching of light, or redshift, give the most reliable distances to other galaxies. This source is thus currently the most distant confirmed galaxy known, and it appears to also be one of the brightest and most massive sources at that time. The galaxy existed over 13 billion years ago. The near-infrared image of the galaxy (inset) has been colored blue as suggestive of its young, and hence very blue, stars. The CANDELS field is a combination of visible-light and near-infrared exposures.
Credits
NASA, ESA, P. Oesch and I. Momcheva (Yale University), and the 3D-HST and HUDF09/XDF Teams| About The Object | |
|---|---|
| Object Name | EGS-zs8-1 |
| Object Description | Distant Galaxy (inset) |
| R.A. Position | 14h 20m 34.89s |
| Dec. Position | 53° 0' 15.4" |
| Constellation | Boötes |
| Distance | Redshift: z = 7.7 (inset) |
| About The Data | |
| Data Description | Data of EGS-zs8-1 were obtained from the HST proposals , , , , , , , , , , PIs: S. Faber (University of California, Santa Cruz) and H. Ferguson (STScI) and , PI: R. Bouwens (University of Leiden). The science team comprises: P. Oesch and P. van Dokkum (Yale University), G. Illingworth (UCO/Lick Observatory), R.J. Bouwens (Leiden Observatory), I. Momcheva (Yale University), B. Holden (UCO/Lick Observatory), G. Roberts-Borsani (Leiden Observatory), R. Smit (Durham University, UK), M. Franx and I. Labbe (Leiden Observatory), V. Gonzalez (University of California, Riverside), and D. Magee (UCO/Lick Observatory). |
| Instrument | HST>ACS/WFC and HST>WFC3/IR |
| Filters | ACS/WFC: F606W (V) WFC3/IR: F125W (J) and F160W (H) |
| About The Image | |
| Color Info | These images are composites of separate exposures acquired by the ACS and the WFC3 instruments on the Hubble Space Telescope. Several filters were used to sample broad wavelength ranges. The color results from assigning different hues (colors) to each monochromatic (grayscale) image associated with an individual filter. In this case, the assigned colors are: Background Image Blue: (V) Green: (J) Red: (H) Inset Image Blue: F160W (H) |
| About The Object | |
|---|---|
| Object Name | A name or catalog number that astronomers use to identify an astronomical object. |
| Object Description | The type of astronomical object. |
| R.A. Position | Right ascension – analogous to longitude – is one component of an object's position. |
| Dec. Position | Declination – analogous to latitude – is one component of an object's position. |
| Constellation | One of 88 recognized regions of the celestial sphere in which the object appears. |
| Distance | The physical distance from Earth to the astronomical object. Distances within our solar system are usually measured in Astronomical Units (AU). Distances between stars are usually measured in light-years. Interstellar distances can also be measured in parsecs. |
| Dimensions | The physical size of the object or the apparent angle it subtends on the sky. |
| About The Data | |
| Data Description |
|
| Instrument | The science instrument used to produce the data. |
| Exposure Dates | The date(s) that the telescope made its observations and the total exposure time. |
| Filters | The camera filters that were used in the science observations. |
| About The Image | |
| Image Credit | The primary individuals and institutions responsible for the content. |
| Publication Date | The date and time the release content became public. |
| Color Info | A brief description of the methods used to convert telescope data into the color image being presented. |
| Orientation | The rotation of the image on the sky with respect to the north pole of the celestial sphere. |
