By developing and testing astronomical software and using existing data,
Like most people, galaxies don't liketravel through space alone. Instead, they tend to cluster in small groups or giant clusters that are found in massive clumps of dark matter.
When developing new software for automaticDetecting Galaxy Clusters Nicolai Sillassen, a master's student at the Technical University of Denmark and a fellow at the Space Dawn Research Center (DAWN), has discovered an amazing group of galaxies.
Group HPC1001. The yellow outlines show the emission of radio waves from stardust mixed with gas between the stars.
Photo: N. Silassen
Called HPC1001, it consists of ten galaxies that can be seen at a distance of 12 billion light years. The group appeared when the universe was only 1.7 billion years old.
It is noteworthy that groups of galaxies on suchearly stage of the history of the universe are very rare. So far, only a few have been found. HPC1001 is one of the most distant groups, and it is also the most compact galaxy cluster ever identified in the universe.
In addition to the fact that the most massive galaxy in this structure “dies,” its star formation activity decreases. This is an important indicator of the evolution of massive structures.
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Cover photo: Galaxy cluster MACS J0416.1-2403 at multiple wavelengths, NASA