a European Space Agency The European Space Agency (ESA) has just published a set of new images it has acquired Euclid Space Telescope. In a press release issued by the Institute of Astrophysics and Space Sciences (IA), Jarl Brinchmanfounding member of the Euclid Consortium Coordination Group and co-curator of Euclid’s scientific legacy, highlights “the ability [deste] “The telescope obtains extremely sharp, wide-field images of space.”
IA and University of Porto He also adds, “The pictures are amazing, and there’s probably nothing there [assim]In visible light over the next few decades.” In fact, the images obtained by Euclid are at least four times sharper than those that can be obtained using ground-based telescopes, which cover vast areas of the sky. With the help of the new telescope, the More than three hundred thousand stars and planets have never been discovered before.
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5 visible gifts
The new images represent A A remarkable diversity of organismsA few days ago Galaxy clustersthrough which it will be possible to study the basic structure of dark matter, passing through A group of galaxies connected together by star bridges And for Spiral galaxy In the process of star formation, ending with a Milky Way nebula. Let’s dissect them one by one:
- The first image is of a galaxy cluster Abel 2390It reveals more than 50,000 galaxies and shows a stunning view of gravitational lensing, with giant curved arcs representing multiple views of the same distant object:
- The second picture is Messi 78, a vibrant stellar nursery shrouded in interstellar dust. Euclid delved deep into this nursery with his infrared camera, revealing hidden regions of star formation for the first time, mapping its complex filaments of gas and dust in unprecedented detail, and discovering newly forming stars and planets:
He shot – and commented on – the first images of Euclid’s mission
- The third picture is NGC 6744It is a typical galaxy that actually makes up most of the stars in the local universe. Euclid’s wide field of view covers the entire galaxy, capturing not only the spiral structure on large scales, but also exquisite detail on small spatial scales:
- The fourth picture is a group of Abell 2764 galaxiesWhich includes hundreds of galaxies in a vast halo of dark matter. Euclid captures many objects in this part of the sky, including background galaxies, distant clusters, and interacting galaxies that project streams and shells of stars:
- Finally, the fifth image appears Evolution and merging of galaxies at work in the Dorado cluster of galaxies, with elongated tails and beautiful shells that can be seen as a result of continuous interactions. Scientists use this data set to study the evolution of galaxies, improve our models of cosmic history, and understand how galaxies form within dark matter halos. Thanks to Euclid’s unique combination of A Large field of view, remarkable depth, and high spatial resolutionit was possible to capture small (star clusters), larger (galactic nuclei) and extended (tidal tails) features in a single image:
Dorado cluster of galaxies
Caught in the cosmic web – from galaxies to superclusters
What is Euclid?
Euclid is a telescope Capable of capturing large areas of the sky simultaneously with great accuracy. Its main goal is Measure the shape of a chain of distant galaxiesSo, based on this data, Building a 3D model of the universeincluding billions of galaxies.
Using this tool, a large team of researchers seeks to determine the location and distribution of the call Dark matter – a type of hypothetical matter that does not interact with light, but plays a crucial role in explaining some of the observations of gravity already obtained, and which is believed to be scattered throughout the universe, forming its “skeleton.” In addition, this telescope, which was launched in July 2023, serves a space mission of the same name that focuses on recording and studying… Dark energyIt’s something more mysterious than dark matter, but it could explain the acceleration of the universe’s expansion relative to the distant past.
Euclid is also the name of the mission and the international federation implementing it.
Portuguese contribution
It consists of more than 2,600 members from 300 institutions 15 European countries, Japan, the United States and CanadaThe Euclid Consortium has included Portugal in its ranks since 2012. It includes, among others, experts in the fields of: Astrophysics, cosmology, theoretical physics and particle physics.
Hey Institute of Astrophysics and Space Sciencesin partnership with Faculty of Sciences, University of Lisbonproduced Programming Who manages the schedule responsible for ensuring more than 50,000 observations will be made by the telescope during the period six years Task duration.
The team is led by the researcher Ismael Tirreno It also plays an important role in defining objectives and requirements for different areas other than the main telescope mission, e.g The study of galaxy expansion or star formation.
If you want to know more about this topic, this Saturday, today On May 25, at 9 pm, in the Great Hall of the Faculty of Sciences of the University of LisbonComment will be given on the results of the first year of operation of the Euclid Consortium. Hey It happened It’s public and free.
What then
Based on these and other photos published in November,… The top ten scientific articles for this project, published on May 24. these Leaves They focus on fascinating discoveries such as interstellar (or rogue) planets wandering into star nurseries or the awakening of stars that have separated from their parent galaxies, as well as countless new stars and dwarf galaxies.
The next release of data from the Euclid Mission Consortium will focus on… The main scientific goals of Euclid. The first summary publication is scheduled to be issued March 2025While another, more comprehensive and substantive session is scheduled to be held June 2026. At least three more rapid releases and two larger data releases are expected before 2031.
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