X-shaped cosmic pattern akin to Einstein's Zig-Zag, discovered in space, offers potential insights into the enigma surrounding the cosmos' expansion.
In the vast expanse of the universe, a rare and intriguing gravitational lens system has been discovered and studied by a team of astronomers led by the Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics. This unique lens, known as J1721+8842, was first spotted in 2017 and is now recognised as the equivalent of "eight needles precisely lined up" in a haystack due to its remarkable structure.
Initially, J1721+8842 was thought to be a galaxy bending the light of a faraway quasar. However, further investigation has revealed that it is a compound lens, made up of two aligned galaxies. This discovery marks the first-ever "Einstein zig-zag lens," as light is believed to have travelled through the lens in a zig-zag pattern.
Gravitational lenses, first proposed by Einstein in 1912, are objects with significant enough gravitational fields that they bend light emanating from other sources in the universe. They are useful to astronomers because they magnify distant light that would otherwise be too faint to see. In the case of J1721+8842, this unique property allows for a closer look at a faraway quasar, providing valuable insights into the origins and future of the universe.
The double lens system of J1721+8842 can help astrophysicists understand the Hubble constant, a number that describes the rate of the universe's expansion. The Hubble constant is different depending on how it is calculated, a problem known as the Hubble tension. Probing the compound lens of J1721+8842 for a new measurement of the Hubble constant will help astronomers understand whether the figure matches up with the cosmological model or not.
The team's research on J1721+8842 is currently hosted on the preprint server arXiv, with plans to publish full lens models, time-delay measurements, and cosmology constraints derived from J1721+8842 as part of the TDCOSMO collaboration. This research could potentially answer some fundamental questions about the cosmos, making J1721+8842 an important discovery that deserves recognition for its unique structure.
In recent years, gravitational lenses have played a significant role in astronomical research. For example, in 2022, astronomers leveraged a gravitational lens to spot Earendel, the oldest known star. As we continue to unravel the mysteries of the universe, gravitational lenses like J1721+8842 will undoubtedly remain valuable tools in our quest for knowledge.
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