The Euclid telescope identifies a rare ring of Einstein (and reveals the secrets of the universe)

Euclidthe detective of the European Space Agency (ESA) made a surprising discovery. The SPAZIAL SPART OF THE ESA, launched on 1 July 2023 for a six -year mission, has identified a rare ring of Einstein in the NGC 6505 galaxy, located about 590 million light years from the earth. This discovery, which took place during the initial tests of the telescope in September 2023, has thrilled scientists and promises to reveal new secrets on the dark universe.

A ring of cosmic light

An Einstein ring is a phenomenon that occurs when the light of a distant galaxy is distorted by the severity of a closer galaxy. If the alignment between the two galaxies is perfect, the light of the galaxy in the background bends around the galaxy in the foreground, forming a bright ring. Bruno Altieriscientist of the Euclid archive, He identified the ring for the first time in a blurred image sent by the telescope.

“I look at Euclid’s data as they arrive,” explains Altieri. “Even from that first observation, I could see it, but after Euclid made other observations in the area, we were able to see a perfect Einstein ring. For me, with an interest of a life for gravitational lenses, it was incredible“.

A laboratory to study the dark universe

Einstein’s rings are a rich laboratory for scientists. Study their gravitational effects it can help us discover the expansion of the universedetect the effects of the invisible dark matter and dark energy and investigate the background source whose light is bent by the dark matter between us and the source. Conor O’erordanof Max Planck Institute for Astrophysicsin Germany, is the main author of the first scientific article that analyzes the ring.

“An Einstein ring is an example of strong gravitational lens“, Explains O’erordan. “All strong lenses are special, because they are so rare and are incredibly useful scientifically useful. This is particularly special, because it is so close to earth and alignment makes it very beautiful “.

Valeria Pettorino, ESA Euclid Project Scientist, underlines the importance of this discovery. “I find it very intriguing that this ring has been observed within a well -known galaxy, discovered for the first time in 1884,” says Pettorino. “The galaxy has been known for astronomers for a long time. Yet this ring had never been observed before. This shows how powerful Euclid is, finding new things even in places we thought we knew well. This discovery is very encouraging for the future of the Euclid mission and demonstrates its fantastic skills.

“Euclid will revolutionize the sector, with all these data that we had never had before,” adds O’Riordan.