James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), to measure the most distant star ever observed — Earendel. This celestial entity came into the scientific spotlight after its discovery by the Hubble Space Telescope in the previous year. Remarkably, Earendel's light has traveled a staggering 12.9 billion years to reach Earth, a manifestation of its brilliance not long after the universe's inception following the Big Bang. Yet, Earendel's location in the cosmos isn't confined to a mere 12.9 billion light-years away from us.
Earendel and history of the universeThe awe-inspiring expansion of the universe since the Big Bang has propelled Earendel's residence to a colossal 28 billion light-years from Earth. This revelation underscores the dynamic and evolving nature of the cosmos, where space itself unfurls over immense timescales. Earendel's presence in the distant reaches of the universe was initially pinpointed through the phenomenon of gravitational lensing, a phenomenon where the gravitational pull of a massive foreground object acts like a lens, bending and amplifying the light of a more distant celestial body. This allowed Hubble to identify Earendel's distant glow.
What is Earendel?Earendel is a distant star that holds the distinction of being the most distant star ever detected. It was first discovered by the Hubble Space Telescope and has recently been studied further using the James Webb Space Telescope. Earendel's light has taken approximately 12.9 billion years to reach Earth, meaning that it was shining not long after the universe's creation following the Big Bang. This star is of significant interest due to its extreme distance and the insights it can provide about the early universe.
JWST's exploration of EarendelThe
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