James Webb Telescope Sees 'Birth' of Three of the Universe's Earliest Galaxies in World-First Observations

 In an astounding breakthrough, the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has captured the birth of some of the universe's earliest galaxies. This unprecedented observation marks the first time astronomers have witnessed such early galactic formation.

• The Discovery

A new study published in Science reveals that JWST detected three infant galaxies forming from a primordial cloud of hydrogen and helium gas just 400 to 600 million years after the Big Bang. This period is known as the era of reionization, a crucial phase when the earliest stars and galaxies began to shine through dense gas clouds, leading to the transparent universe we know today.

"These galaxies are like sparkling islands in a sea of otherwise neutral, opaque gas," said Kasper Heintz, lead author and assistant professor of astrophysics at the Cosmic Dawn Center (DAWN), University of Copenhagen. "Without Webb, we would not be able to observe these very early galaxies, let alone learn so much about their formation."

• Insights from the Study

The research team used JWST to examine 12 known early galaxies dating back to no more than 600 million years post-Big Bang. Our 13.8 billion-year-old universe was merely 3% of its current age during this time. They specifically searched for galaxies absorbing radiation through dense clouds of neutral hydrogen gas, indicating active star formation.

By analyzing the spectra—the different wavelengths of light emitted by these ancient galaxies—the team discovered that significant amounts of neutral hydrogen gas absorbed light from three galaxies.

"This suggests that we are seeing the assembly of neutral hydrogen gas into galaxies," said Darach Watson, co-author of the study from DAWN. "That gas will go on to cool, clump, and form new stars."

• A Window into the Early Universe

This early star formation was critical in ending the cosmic dark ages and ushering in the reionization era. As stars and galaxies emerged from the dense gas clouds of the early universe, their stellar radiation ionized the surrounding gas, transforming space from an opaque hydrogen soup into the clear cosmos we see today.

JWST has previously observed ancient galaxies from this era, but this marks the first time astronomers have witnessed "their very birth, and thus, the construction of the first star systems in the universe," Heintz said.

• Future Implications

If confirmed by further JWST observations, these findings could answer pivotal questions about the nature of the primordial gas clouds and the emergence of the first galaxies.

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