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Scientists glimpse little galactic clusters on their way to greatness

Light from 11 billion years ago provides a view of galactic ‘protoclusters’ that could grow into behemoths.
The Large Binocular Telescope Interferometer surrounded by trees.

Data from the Large Binocular Telescope in Safford, Arizona, has helped researchers to study the rapid star formation inside young clumps of galaxies. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

Galaxies like to group together. The Milky Way and its nearest neighbours, for example, are part of the Virgo Cluster, which has more than 1,000 member galaxies. Now, in a bit of astronomical time travel, researchers have had a peek at how the cluster’s core might have looked around 11 billion years ago1.

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Nature 599, 183 (2021)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-021-03022-3

References

  1. Polletta, M. et al. Astron. Astrophys. 654, A121 (2021).

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