El Gordo: a massive distant merging galaxy cluster

This picture of the galaxy cluster ACT-CL J0102−4915 combines images taken with ESO’s Very Large Telescope with images from the SOAR Telescope. This newly discovered object has been nicknamed El Gordo — the "big" or "fat one" in Spanish. It consists of two separate galaxy subclusters colliding at several million kilometres per hour, and is so far away that its light has travelled for seven billion years to reach the Earth. The merging cluster appear as a cloud of huge numbers of faint galaxies stretching from the lower left to the upper right of the picture. Close to the centre a pale blue line caused by gravitational lensing of a more distant galaxy can be seen.

Credit:

ESO/SOAR

Over de afbeelding

Id:eso1203b
Type:Observatie
Publicatiedatum:9 januari 2012 12:12
Gerelateerde berichten:eso1203
Grootte:1530 x 1182 px

Over het object

Naam:ACT-CL J0102−4915
Type:Early Universe : Galaxy : Grouping : Cluster
Afstand:z=0.87 (roodverschuiving)
Constellation:Phoenix
Categorie:Cosmology

Image Formats

Grote JPEG
889,5 KB

Inzoomen


Wallpapers

1024x768
337,2 KB
1280x1024
620,4 KB
1600x1200
782,2 KB
1920x1200
892,0 KB
2048x1536
1,2 MB

Coordinates

Position (RA):1 2 57.12
Position (Dec):-49° 15' 20.11"
Field of view:6.46 x 4.99 arcminutes
Orientation:North is 0.0° left of vertical

Kleuren & filters

BandGolflengteTelescoop
Optisch
R
655 nmVery Large Telescope
FORS2
Infrarood
I
768 nmVery Large Telescope
FORS2
Infrarood
Z
910 nmVery Large Telescope
FORS2