A spaceship moving near the speed of light would appear rotated, special relativity experiment proves
In a bizarre repercussion of Albert Einstein's Special Theory of Relativity, objects traveling close to the speed of light appear flipped over.
The Special Theory of Relativity, or special relativity for short, describes what happens to objects traveling at close to the speed of light. In particular, it discusses two major repercussions of moving so quickly. One is that time would clearly appear to pass more slowly for the object traveling close to the speed of light relative to slower moving bodies around it. This is rooted in a phenomenon called "time dilation," which also leads to the famous Twin Paradox, has been proven experimentally and is even considered when building certain kinds of technology. Global positioning survey (GPS) satellites in orbit, for instance, have to account for time dilation when providing accurate navigation data.
Another consequence is what we call length contraction. "Suppose a rocket whizzes past us at 90% of the speed of light," Peter Schattschneider, a professor of physics at TU Wien, the Vienna University of Technology, said in a statement. "For us, it no longer has the same length as before it took off, but is 2.3 times shorter."
This doesn't mean the rocket literally contracts, but rather that it appears contracted to an observer. Astronauts on board the rocket, for example, would still measure their spacecraft to be the same length that it has always been. It's all relative — hence the name of the theory.
One consequence of length contraction was proposed in 1959 by physicists James Terrell and Roger Penrose. Known as the Terrell–Penrose effect, it predicted that objects moving at a high fraction of the speed of light should appear rotated.
"If you wanted to take a picture of the rocket as it flew past, you would have to take into account that the light from different points took different lengths of time to reach the camera," said Schattschneider.
For example, Schattschneider describes trying to take an image of a cube-shaped spacecraft — perhaps a Borg cube! — moving obliquely past us at almost the speed of light. First, we need to state the obvious, which is that light emitted (or reflected) from a corner on the closest side of the cube to us travels a shorter distance than light from the corner of the farthest side of the cube. Two photons departing at the same time from each of those two corners would therefore reach us at slightly different times, because one photon has to travel farther than the other. What this means is in a still image, in which the captured photons have all arrived at a camera lens at the same time, the photon from the far corner must have departed earlier than the one from the near corner in order to arrive synchronously.
So far, so logical. However, this cube is not stationary — it's moving extremely fast and covers a lot of ground very quickly.
Thus, in our hypothetical still image of this speeding cube, the far corner photon was emitted earlier than the near corner photon as expected — except when the cube was in a different position. And, because the cube is moving at nearly the speed of light, that position was very different indeed.
"This makes it look to us as if the cube had been rotated," said Schattschneider. By the time these two photons reach us, the corner on the far side looks like it is at the near corner, and vice versa.
However, this effect had not been observed before; accelerating anything other than particles to near the speed of light requires too much energy. However, a team of researchers from TU Wien and the University of Vienna, including Schattschneider, have found a way to simulate the conditions required to rotate the image of a relativistic object.
Students Dominik Hornoff and Victoria Helm of TU Wien performed an experiment in which they were able to manufacture a scenario where they could pretend the speed of light was just 6.56 feet (2 meters) per second. This had the effect of slowing the whole process down so they could capture it on a high-speed camera.
"We moved a cube and a sphere around the lab and used the high-speed camera to record the laser flashes reflected from different points on these objects at different times," said Hornoff and Helm in a joint statement. "If you get the timing right, you can create a situation that produces the same results as if the speed of light were no more than two meters per second."
The cube and the sphere were deformed to mimic length contraction — the cube, simulated to be moving at 80% of the speed of light, was actually a cuboid with an aspect ratio of 0.6, while the sphere was flattened into a disk in accordance with a velocity of 99.9% of the speed of light.
Related Stories:
— Einstein wins again! Quarks obey relativity laws, Large Hadron Collider finds
— Euclid 'dark universe' telescope discovers stunning Einstein ring in warped space-time (image)
— Black holes may obey the laws of physics after all, new theory suggests
Hornoff and Helm illuminated the cube and the sphere respectively with extremely short pulses from a laser; they also recorded images of the reflected light with camera exposures of just a trillionth of a second (a span of time known as a picosecond). After each image, the cube and the sphere were repositioned as though they were moving at close to the speed of light. The images were then combined to include only those where each object is illuminated by the laser at the moment when light would have been emitted if the speed of light were only two meters per second, rather than the 983,571,056 feet (299,792,458 meters) per second that it actually is.
"We combined the still images into short video clips of the ultra-fast objects. The result was exactly what we expected," said Schattschneider. "A cube appears twisted, a sphere remains a sphere but the north pole is in a different place."
The Terrell–Penrose effect is just another example of how nature, when pushed to extremes, becomes topsy-turvy, creating phenomena quite alien to our existence.
The findings were presented on May 5 in the journal Communications Physics.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
The 21 largest recorded earthquakes in history
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. As the world's tectonic plates crash, grind and dive into one another, they release their pent-up energy in giant earthquakes that can rock the ground, trigger volcanic eruptions, move mountains and unleash tsunamis. And since scientists figured out how to measure earthquake magnitude in the early 1900s, some truly massive quakes have shaken our planet. These are the monstrous "megathrust" earthquakes, the most powerful quakes in the world. A huge fraction of these earthquakes occurred in a handful of subduction zones along the seismically restless "Ring of Fire" in the Pacific, where tectonic plates dive beneath one another. From the devastating Sumatran quake and tsunami of 2004 to a monstrous temblor in Siberia that, thankfully, killed no one, here are the 20 largest earthquakes ever recorded, according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). 21. Sanriku-Oki, Japan; 1933; magnitude 8.4 A magnitude 8.4 quake struck near the Sanriku region of Japan on March 2, 1933, according to the USGS. The quake occurred about 180 miles (290 kilometers) offshore of Honshu, Japan. Most of the deaths resulted from the tsunami the quake generated, which swept away 3,000 homes and destroyed 2,000 others and generated nearly 100-foot (29 meters) waves in Honshu, Japan. Several decades later, a magnitude 9.0 temblor would rock the same general region, causing the Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami of 2011. This area is part of the Pacific Ring of Fire, a nearly 25,000-mile-long (40,000 km) horseshoe-shaped belt that is known for both earthquakes and volcanic activity. The ring fringes the boundaries of the Pacific Plate wherever it smashes into its neighboring plates; in the region around Tōhoku, the Pacific Plate is colliding with the North American Plate. 20. Arequipa, Peru; 2001; magnitude 8.4 A magnitude 8.4 earthquake struck 4 miles (6 km) from the coastal town of Atico, Peru, on June 23, 2001. At least 74 people were killed; more than a third of them were swept away by the resulting tsunami. More than 2,600 people were injured, and over 50,000 homes were damaged by the strong ground shaking. The quake occurred at the boundary of the Nazca and South American plates, where the Nazca Plate is moving northeast at about 3 inches (78 millimeters) per year, smashing into and diving beneath the South American Plate, according to the USGS. Ground shaking as a result of the seismic activity was felt as far away as La Paz, Bolivia. 19. South of Sumatra, 2007, magnitude 8.4 On April 12, 2007, a magnitude 8.4 earthquake struck approximately 76 miles (122 km) offshore of Bengkulu, Indonesia, on the island of Sumatra. The giant quake occurred due to thrust faulting on the boundary between the Sunda and Australian plates. Around 25 people died, and more than 161 were injured. More than 20,000 buildings were damaged in the cities of Bengkulu and Sumatera Barat, according to the USGS. The quake marked the fourth magnitude 7.9 or greater temblor to strike the general region that decade; the area was still actively remodeling itself after the monster quake that struck just after Christmas Day in 2004 (see #3). 18. Near Kamchatka Peninsula, 1923, magnitude 8.4 Relatively little is known about the magnitude 8.4 quake that struck off the east coast of Kamchatka, Russia, on Feb. 3, 1923. The sparsely populated area of the Russian Far East sits near the Kuril-Kamchatka Trench, where the Pacific Plate is diving beneath the Okhotsk Plate, a teensy plate that was once thought to be part of the North American Plate. No reported injuries or deaths occurred, but the quake triggered a modest tsunami, according to the USGS. 17. Kuril Islands, Russia; 1963; magnitude 8.5 Relatively little is known about the quakes that struck the remote Kuril Islands on Oct. 13, 1963. This volcanic archipelago stretches between Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula and Hokkaido, Japan. No deaths, damage or injuries were reported as a result of this temblor, but it triggered a tsunami that reached the northern Pacific Ocean. 16. Atacama, Chile; 1922; magnitude 8.5 On Nov. 11, 1922, a massive magnitude 8.5 quake struck the Atacama Desert on the border of Argentina and Chile. Even though the epicenter of the earthquake was beneath land, the shaking was so strong that it triggered a tsunami that killed hundreds of people, according to news reports at the time. 15. Banda Sea, Indonesia; 1938; magnitude 8.5 On Feb. 1, 1938, a magnitude 8.5 quake rocked the seafloor about 88 miles (141 km) northwest of Tual, Indonesia. Despite the strength of this temblor, the damage was fairly minor. Residents of the Banda and Kai islands felt the tremors, while in the city of Tual, glassware broke and a pendulum stopped. 14. Unimak Island, Alaska; 1946; magnitude 8.6 A magnitude 8.6 quake struck Unimak Island on April 1, 1946. Despite its large size, the quake did not destroy any buildings. However, it triggered a 115-foot-high (35 m) tsunami that swept away a lighthouse, along with its five occupants, according to the USGS. When the tsunami reached Hilo, on the Big Island of Hawaii, it swept away 159 people and caused $26 million in property damage. Unimak Island is one of the Aleutian Islands, which sit on the restive Ring of Fire, just like many of the other regions struck by large quakes on this list. 13. Andreanof Islands, Alaska; 1957; magnitude 8.6 The quake that struck off of the Andreanof Islands, part of the Aleutian Islands, on March 9, 1957, registered a magnitude 8.6. The quake occurred about 53 miles (86 km) southeast of Adak, Alaska, a tiny village of a few hundred people and the state's southernmost town. No one was killed, but the quake destroyed two bridges, created a meters-long crack in one road in Adak and damaged houses. The quake also generated a 49-foot-high (15 m) tsunami that slammed into the nearby Scotch Cap lighthouse, as well as a 26-foot-high (8 m) tsunami that washed away oil lines in Sand Bay. The tsunami then traveled to Hawaii, where it destroyed two villages, and to San Diego, where it also damaged some property. 12. Northern Sumatra, Indonesia; 2005; magnitude 8.6 The area around Sumatra is a seismically active one, with the Indonesian island sitting astride the volcanically active Pacific Ring of Fire. That seismically unsettled region, where the Australian Plate and Sunda Plate meet, unleashed a massive amount of energy on March 28, 2005, when a magnitude 8.6 quake struck 48 miles (78 km) west of Singkil, at a depth of 18 miles (30 km). More than 1,300 people were killed, another 340 were injured and hundreds of buildings were destroyed, mostly on the island of Nias. The quake was felt as far away as India and Sri Lanka. The earthquake occurred because the Australian Plate is moving to the northeast at a rate of 2 inches (50 millimeters) per year and is diving into the mantle at the Sunda Trench. According to the USGS, the massive quake was unleashed in the aftermath of the massive Indian Ocean earthquake of 2004 as the faults in the region continued to adjust to that seismic shift. 11. Off the west coast of northern Sumatra, 2012, magnitude 8.6 On April 11, 2012, a magnitude 8.6 temblor struck off the coast of northern Sumatra. Because it struck a few hundred miles off the coast, it was felt as strong shaking in only a few population centers, such as Banda Aceh and Meulaboh, Indonesia. It caused only light structural damage in those metropolitan regions, according to the USGS. Light shaking could be felt as far away as Mumbai, India, and Broome, Australia. Two people were killed directly by the quake, eight died of heart attacks and 12 were injured. 10. Assam-Tibet, 1950, magnitude 8.6 At least 1,500 people died across eastern Tibet and Assam, India, when this temblor shook the region on Aug. 15, 1950. Ground cracks, large landslides and sand volcanoes struck the area. The quake was felt in China's Sichuan and Yunnan provinces, and as far away as Kolkata, India. The quake caused large landslides that blocked rivers. When the rivers finally burst through the walls of debris, waves inundated several villages and killed hundreds of people. This quake is commonly called the Assam-Tibet earthquake or the Assam earthquake, even though the epicenter was in Tibet. The quake struck at the intersection of the most vigorous collision of continental plates on the planet, where the Indian Plate smashes into the Eurasian Plate and dives beneath it. The slow-motion crash helped create the massive Himalayas. 9. Rat Islands, Alaska; 1965; magnitude 8.7 Alaska had been a state for only six years when this huge earthquake triggered a tsunami over 30 feet (10 m) high on Feb. 4, 1965. Despite its size, the quake caused little damage due to its remote location at the tip of the Aleutian Islands. The tsunami was reported in Hawaii and spread as far as Japan. The temblor was the result of the Pacific Plate diving beneath the North American Plate at the Alaska-Aleutian megathrust, which has been the location of many megathrust earthquakes. The quake cracked wood buildings and split an asphalt runway. Hairline cracks also formed in the runways at the U.S. Coast Guard's Loran Station. 8. Kamchatka Peninsula, Russia; 2025; magnitude 8.8 On July 29, 2025, a magnitude 8.8 earthquake struck approximately 40 miles (60 km) from Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula, at a depth of 12.8 miles (20.7 km). The earthquake generated multiple tsunamis, with warnings issued in regions across the Pacific, including North America, South America, Japan, Russia and Pacific island nations. The earthquake occurred when the Pacific plate rubbed against the North American plate. According to the USGS, the likely cause was a slip over a large fault area. It was the largest earthquake since 2011's magnitude 9 Tohoku earthquake in Japan. 7. Off the coast of Ecuador, 1906, magnitude 8.8 On Jan. 31, 1906, a catastrophic magnitude 8.8 earthquake hit off the coast of Ecuador and Colombia and generated a strong tsunami that killed 500 to 1,500 people. The tsunami spread along the coast of Central America, and even lapped at the shorelines in San Francisco and Japan. The earthquake occurred along the boundary between the Nazca Plate and the South American Plate. Because it hit more than 100 years ago, reports are spotty. But according to the USGS, witnesses reported a huge rush of water in Honolulu Bay. All the steam and sailboats in the bay were turned around, and then a sudden flood tide roared inland. 6. Offshore Maule, Chile; 2010; magnitude 8.8 On Feb. 27, 2010, an earthquake and tsunami hit central Chile. At least 500 people were killed and 800,000 were displaced by the natural disaster. More than 1.8 million people were affected, and the total economic loss was estimated at $30 billion. Like many other quakes on this list, this temblor took place along the seismically active boundary between the Nazca and South American tectonic plates, which can release bone-shatteringly strong shaking. The quake hit just over a month after the disastrous magnitude 7.0 quake in Port-Au-Prince, Haiti, which killed more than 200,000 people. 5. Kamchatka Peninsula, Russia; 1952; magnitude 9.0 The world's first recorded magnitude 9.0 earthquake struck off the east coast of Kamchatka on Nov. 4, 1952. The quake generated a 43-foot (13 m) tsunami locally. The tsunami rocked Crescent City, California. No one died, but in Hawaii, property damage was estimated at up to $1 million ($11.12 million in today's dollars). The waves tossed boats onto the beach, caused houses to collide, destroyed piers, scoured beaches and moved road pavement. 4. Tōhoku, Japan; 2011; magnitude 9.1 On March 11, 2011, a magnitude 9.1 quake triggered a tsunami that left more than 15,700 people dead, more than 4,600 missing, over 5,300 injured and more than 130,900 displaced, according to the USGS. More than 332,000 buildings, 2,100 roads, 56 bridges and 26 railways were damaged as a result of the quake. The quake also damaged nuclear reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, leading to one of the biggest nuclear disasters in history. This earthquake was the largest ever recorded in Japan, and cost an estimated $309 billion in damage. For weeks afterward, strong aftershocks above magnitude 6.0, and even 7.0, continued to rock the region, and the quake sent tsunami waves as far as Hawaii, California and the Galapagos Islands. Even in distant Antarctica, the quakes cracked large slabs of ice from the Sulzberger Ice Shelf, according to the USGS. The quake was caused by thrust faulting near the Japan Trench, the boundary between the Pacific and North American plates. 3. Sumatra-Andaman Islands, 2004, magnitude 9.1 This quake was the third-largest earthquake in history and the largest since the 1964 earthquake in Prince William Sound, Alaska (see #2). In total, nearly 300,000 people were killed or presumed dead, and about 1.2 million people were displaced by the earthquake and subsequent tsunami in 10 countries in Southeast Asia and East Africa. Extremely strong shaking was felt in Banda Aceh, but the deadliest aspect of this quake was the resulting tsunami, which caused more deaths than any other in recorded history up to that point. The tsunami was recorded nearly worldwide on tide gauges in the Indian, Pacific and Atlantic oceans. The massive quake struck one day after Christmas along the interface of the Indian and Burma tectonic plates and was caused by the release of stress that developed as the Indian Plate dived beneath the Burma microplate. The massive fault zone, which was offshore, was as long as California, according to the USGS. 2. Prince William Sound, Alaska; 1964; magnitude 9.2 This great earthquake and ensuing tsunami took 128 lives and caused about $311 million in property loss. The earthquake damage was heavy in many towns, including Anchorage, which was about 75 miles (120 km) northwest of the epicenter. The quake, which struck on March 27, 1964, ruptured along a seismically active fault between the North American and Pacific plates. The shaking lasted about 3 minutes. Landslides in Anchorage caused heavy damage. Huge slides occurred in the downtown business section, and water mains and gas, sewer, telephone and electrical systems were disrupted throughout the area. 1. Valdivia, Chile; 1960; magnitude 9.5 Approximately 1,655 people died in the largest earthquake ever recorded, which struck Valdivia, Chile, on May 22, 1960. Thousands more were injured, and millions were left homeless. Southern Chile suffered $550 million in damage. The quake triggered a tsunami that killed 61 people in Hawaii, 138 in Japan and 32 in the Philippines. The earthquake struck where the Nazca Plate dives underneath the South American Plate, on the Peru-Chile Trench. Editor's Note: This article was originally published on 2012. Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
Earth's 'oldest' impact crater is much younger than previously thought, new study finds
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. This article was originally published at The Conversation. The publication contributed the article to Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights. Ever been late because you misread a clock? Sometimes, the "clocks" geologists use to date events can also be misread. Unravelling Earth's 4.5-billion-year history with rocks is tricky business. Case in point: the discovery of an ancient meteorite impact crater was recently reported in the remote Pilbara region of Western Australia. The original study, by a different group, made headlines with the claim the crater formed 3.5 billion years ago. If true, it would be Earth's oldest by far. As it turns out, we'd also been investigating the same site. Our results are published in Science Advances today. While we agree that this is the site of an ancient meteorite impact, we have reached different conclusions about its age, size and significance. Let's consider the claims made about this fascinating crater. One impact crater, two versions of events Planetary scientists search for ancient impacts to learn about Earth's early formation. So far, nobody has found an impact crater older than the 2.23-billion-year-old Yarrabubba structure, also in Australia. (Some of the authors from both 2025 Pilbara studies were coauthors on the 2020 Yarrabubba study.) The new contender is located in an area called North Pole Dome. Despite the name, this isn't where Santa lives. It's an arid, hot, ochre-stained landscape. The first report on the new crater claimed it formed 3.5 billion years ago, and was more than 100 kilometers in diameter. It was proposed that such a large impact might have played a role in forming continental crust in the Pilbara. More speculatively, the researchers also suggested it may have influenced early life. Our study concludes the impact actually happened much later, sometime after 2.7 billion years ago. This is at least 800 million years younger than the earlier estimate (and we think it's probably even younger; more on that in a moment). We also determined the crater was much smaller – about 16km in diameter. In our view, this impact was too young and too small to have influenced continent formation or early life. So how could two studies arrive at such different findings? Subtle clues of an impact The originally circular crater is deeply eroded, leaving only subtle clues on the landscape. However, among the rust-colored basalts are unique telltale signs of meteorite impact: shatter cones. Shatter cones are distinctive fossilized imprints of shock waves that have passed through rocks. Their unique conical shapes form under brief but immense pressure where a meteorite strikes Earth. Both studies found shatter cones, and agree the site is an ancient impact. This new crater also needed a name. We consulted the local Aboriginal people, the Nyamal, who shared the traditional name for this place and its people: Miralga. The "Miralga impact structure" name recognizes this heritage. Determining the timing of the impact The impact age was estimated by field observations, as neither study found material likely to yield an impact age by radiometric dating – a method that uses measurements of radioactive isotopes. Both studies applied a geological principle called the law of superposition. This states that rock layers get deposited one on top of another over time, so rocks on top are younger than those below. The first group found shatter cones within and below a sedimentary layer known to have been deposited 3.47 billion years ago, but no shatter cones in younger rocks above this layer. This meant the impact occurred during deposition of the sedimentary layer. Their observation seemed to be a "smoking gun" for an impact 3.47 billion years ago. As it turns out, there was more to the story. Our investigation found shatter cones in the same 3.47 billion-year-old rocks, but also in younger overlying rocks, including lavas known to have erupted 2.77 billion years ago. The impact had to occur after the formation of the youngest rocks that contained shatter cones, meaning sometime after the 2.77-billion-year-old lavas. At the moment, we don't know precisely how young the crater is. We can only constrain the impact to have occurred between 2.7 billion and 400 million years ago. We're working on dating the impact by isotopic methods, but these results aren't yet in. Smaller than originally thought We made the first map showing where shatter cones are found. There are many hundreds over an area 6km across. From this map and their orientations, we calculate the original crater was about 16km in diameter. A 16km crater is a far cry from the original estimate of more than 100km. It's too small to have influenced the formation of continents or life. By the time of the impact, the Pilbara was already quite old. A new connection to Mars Science is a self-policing sport. Claims of discovery are based on data available at the time, but they often require modification based on new data or observations. While it's not the world's oldest, the Miralga impact is scientifically unique, as craters formed in basalt are rare. Most basalts there formed 3.47 billion years ago, making them the oldest shocked target rocks known. Prior to impact, these ancient basalts had been chemically altered by seawater. Sedimentary rocks nearby also contain the earliest well-established fossils on Earth. Such rocks likely covered much of early Earth and Mars. This makes the Miralga impact structure a playground for planetary scientists studying the cratered surface (and maybe early life) of Mars. It's an easily accessible proving ground for Mars exploration instruments and imagery, right here on Earth. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
13 hours ago
- Yahoo
James Webb Space Telescope revisits a classic Hubble image of over 2,500 galaxies
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. The James Webb Space Telescope has returned to the scene of one of the Hubble Space Telescope's most iconic images, the Ultra Deep Field, to capture galaxies throughout cosmic history. This new image was taken as part of the JWST Advanced Deep Extragalactic Survey (JADES), which is intent on further probing in infrared light two patches of sky that were originally imaged by Hubble: the Hubble Deep Field (1995) and the Hubble Ultra Deep Field (2004). The deep fields were Hubble's most intense stares into the universe, revealing the faintest galaxies at the highest redshifts that Hubble could see, galaxies that existed over 13 billion years ago and whose light has been traveling for all that time. The Hubble Ultra Deep Field, in particular, was revisited several times by Hubble, in 2009, 2012 and 2014, using the near-infrared channels on the space telescope's Wide Field Camera 3. It shows some 10,000 galaxies detectable in an area of sky just 2.4 arcminutes square, which is less than a tenth of the diameter of the Full Moon in the night sky. However, Hubble can only see so far. At the greatest redshifts, corresponding to galaxies that we see as they existed within a few hundred million years of the Big Bang, visible light is stretched into infrared wavelengths beyond Hubble's capacity to see. So, to beat this limitation, the JWST has stepped up. The giant 6.5-meter space telescope got its first good look at the Hubble Ultra Deep Field in October 2022 with its Near-Infrared Camera. It has revisited the Ultra Deep Field several times, as part of the JADES project, and this latest image was captured by the JWST's Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) Deep Imaging Survey (MIDIS for short). Indeed, the instrument's shortest-wavelength filter (F560W, which detects infrared light from 4.9 to 6.4 microns, centered on 5.6 microns) took the longest exposure of any single filter as part of this image, totaling 41 hours. The image doesn't show the entirety of the Ultra Deep Field, only a section of it containing about 2,500 visible galaxies, four-fifths of them being truly distant, high redshift galaxies. None are record-breakers — the maximum redshifts visible are about 12, equating to 380 million years after the Big Bang, or 13.4 billion years ago. Just to compare, the current highest redshift galaxy, MoM-z14 (which is not part of the Ultra Deep Field), has a redshift of 14.4 and we see it as it existed about 280 million years after the Big Bang. When coupled with data from JWST's Near-Infrared Camera (NIRCam) that operates at shorter wavelengths (1.9 to 4.8 microns), the observations reveal a great deal about the many galaxies in the image, most of which are visible as small dots of light. The image is presented in false color, since infrared light has no visible colors since it is beyond what the human eye can see. Hundreds of red galaxies in the image are either star-forming galaxies that are shrouded by interstellar dust that absorbs the starlight and re-radiates it in infrared, or are highly evolved galaxies with lots of older, redder stars that formed near the beginning of the universe. Meanwhile, the small greenish-white galaxies are those that are at very high redshift, meaning we see them as they exist mostly during the first billion years of cosmic history. On the other hand, the larger blue and cyan galaxies are closer with low-redshifts and so appear brighter to NIRCam than to MIRI. RELATED STORIES — James Webb Space Telescope eyes Hubble Ultra Deep Field in stunning detail (photo) — JWST peers through a cosmic lens in 'deepest gaze' to date | Space photo of the day for May 27, 2025 — Hubble and James Webb Space Telescopes show 2 sides of star cluster duo | Space photo of the day for July 10, 2025 Astronomers work to push ever deeper with the JWST, adding observation on top of observations to chart the development of galaxies from close to the dawn of the universe to the present day. Among the data could be answers to many of cosmology's greatest secrets, such as how supermassive black holes formed, how galaxies formed, and when the majority of stars in the universe came into being. This is all still a work in progress, so stay tuned! A study of the JWST Ultra Deep Field observations as published in the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics. Solve the daily Crossword
