Hubble Space Telescope Catches Giant Cluster: SDSS J10500017

A new image from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope shows the diverse collection of galaxies in the huge cluster SDSS J1050+0017.

This Hubble image shows a massive group of galaxies bound together by gravity — a galaxy cluster named SDSS J1050+0017. Image credit: NASA / ESA / Hubble / Judy Schmidt, www.geckzilla.com.

SDSS J1050+0017, also known as ClG J1050+0017, is approximately 6 billion light-years away from Earth.

The gigantic mass of this galaxy cluster creates the fascinating phenomenon of strong gravitational lensing.

SDSS J1050+0017’s gravity bends light coming from behind it in a similar way to how the base of a wine glass bends light.

The effects of this lensing can be clearly seen as curved streaks forming a circular shape around the center of the Hubble image.

Astronomers can use these distorted galaxies to calculate the mass of the cluster — including the mass of the dark matter within it — and to peer deeper into the Universe as otherwise possible.

Gravitational lensing does not only distort the views of galaxies, it also enlarges their appearance on the sky and magnifies their light.

Hubble has viewed gravitational lensing many times, and produced truly stunning images.

Scientists even set up a dedicated program to study different galaxy clusters which show a great number of lensed galaxies: the Frontier Fields Program.

This way some of the most distant galaxies in the Universe — including an extremely distant galaxy lensed by SDSS J1050+0017 — were found.

With each additional cluster being observed some more distant galaxies are added to this list, slowly completing our picture of how galaxies looked and evolved in the early Universe.

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