Astronomers estimate that this particular galaxy was once a spiral, like our own. But its collision with a smaller galaxy gave it the shape it has in the image taken by the space telescope.
NASA today released a rare and stunning image of a galaxy 500 million light-years away from Earth, the Cartwheel Galaxy, whose rings are captured in unprecedented clarity thanks to the state-of-the-art James Webb Space Telescope.
Astronomers estimate that this particular galaxy was once a spiral, like our own. But its collision with a smaller galaxy gave it the shape it has in the image taken by the space telescope.
Gradually, rings were formed that look like the ripples caused by a pebble falling into the sea.
The Cartwheel Galaxy had already been observed by the Hubble Space Telescope, but James Webb revealed new details. “It gives us an idea of what has happened in the past and how it will evolve in the future,” the US space agency says.
A $10 billion technological masterpiece, the James Webb Space Telescope launched about seven months ago and is nearly 1.5 million kilometers from Earth.
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