"This Hubble Space Telescope snapshot shows three magnified images of a distant galaxy embedded in a cluster of galaxies.
These images are produced by a trick of nature called gravitational lensing. The galaxy cluster's immense gravity magnifies and distorts the light from the distant galaxy behind it, creating the multiple images. The galaxy cluster, catalogued as SDSS J223010.47-081017.8, is 7 billion light-years from Earth.
Hubble has observed many gravitationally lensed galaxies. However, the images spotted in this Hubble snapshot are unique. Two of the magnified images, shown in the pull-out at bottom right, are exact copies of each other. The two bright ovals are the cores of the galaxy. This rare phenomenon occurs because the background galaxy straddles a ripple in the fabric of space. This “ripple” is an area of greatest magnification, caused by the gravity of dense amounts of dark matter, the unseen glue that makes up most of the universe's mass. As light from the faraway galaxy passes through the cluster along this ripple, two mirror images are produced, along with a third image that can be seen off to the side.
A close-up of the third image is shown in the pull-out at top right. This image most closely resembles the remote galaxy, which is located more than 11 billion light-years away. Based on a reconstruction of this image, the researchers determined that the distant galaxy appears to an edge-on, barred spiral with ongoing, clumpy star formation.
The mirror images are named “Hamilton’s Object" for the astronomer who discovered them.
Credits
Lead Author
NASA, ESA, Richard E. Griffiths (UH Hilo)
Co-Author
Jenny Wagner (ZAH)
Image Processing
Joseph DePasquale (STScI)
| About The Object | |
|---|---|
| Object Name | SDSS J223010.47-081017.8 "Hamilton's Object" |
| Object Description | Multiply lensed galaxy |
| R.A. Position | 22:30:09.69 |
| Dec. Position | -08:09:40.19 |
| Constellation | Aquarius |
| Distance | About 7 billion light years (redshift z=0.82) |
| Dimensions | Image is 1.7 arcmin across |
| About The Data | |
| Data Description | The HST observations include those from programs , (H. Ebeling) |
| Instrument | ACS/WFC, WFC3/IR |
| Exposure Dates | Sep 2015 and Apr 2016 |
| Filters | F606W, F814W, F110W, F140W |
| About The Image | |
| Color Info | These images are a composite of separate exposures acquired by the ACS and WFC3 instruments on the Hubble Space Telescope. Several filters were used to sample narrow 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: Blue: F606W Green: F814W Red: F110W + F140W |
| Compass Image |  |
| 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. |
