Distant Galaxy Cluster
Ssc2005 03a1

Credit: CTIO/P. Palunas

Observation • November 4th, 2004 • ssc2005-03a1

ssc2005-03a1

This visible-light image shows a giant galactic blob containing the three merging galaxies NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope discovered within it.

Blobs are intensely glowing clouds of hot hydrogen gas that envelop faraway galaxies. They are about 10 times as large as the galaxies they surround. Visible-light images like the one shown here reveal the vast extent of blobs, but don't provide much information about their host galaxies.

The visible-light image was taken by the Blanco Telescope at the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory, Chile.

About the Object

Name
J2143-4423
Type
Galaxy > Grouping > Multiple
Distance
11,000,000,000 Light Years
Redshift
2.38

Color Mapping

Band Wavelength Telescope
Optical CTIO
Optical CTIO

Astrometrics

Position ()
RA =21h 42m 42.7s
Dec = -43° 29' 49.8"
Field of View
0.0 x 0.0 arcminutes
Orientation
North is up