The NASA Hubble Space Telescope photograph (left) shows a pair of L-shaped images with striking mirror-symmetry. These are thought to arise from a very distant galaxy seen through a cluster of foreground galaxies (right). The gravity of the galaxy cluster acts as a natural magnifying glass, bending and focusing the light of the more distant source into several images, each of which is apparently larger and brighter than would otherwise be the case. This rare combination of Hubble's powerful telescope mirrors and the natural telephoto lens gives astronomers unprecedented information on the nature of very distant galaxies, and on the distribution and nature of matter in the foreground cluster. The two compact objects in the center of the HST image are thought to be unrelated galaxies in the foreground cluster.
The observations were made with Hubble's Wide Field Camera in one of the first long exposures (six hours) with the orbiting observatory.
| About The Object | |
|---|---|
| Object Name | AC 114 |
| R.A. Position | 00h 53m 39.7s |
| Dec. Position | -21° 40' 44.0" |
| 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. |
