The white or bluish spots are six images of the same quasar created by the lensing effect of the two galaxies, one as a spot of light in the center and the other as a red arc.
F. Duke et al.
A possible alignment between two massive galaxies will help astronomers better measure the expansion of the universe and shed light on the mysterious nature of dark energy.
While working on the general theory of relativity, Albert Einstein predicted that light from distant galaxies and stars should be bent by the gravity of very massive objects, like a glass lens…
Article amended on November 15, 2024
Changes were made to clarify that the red arc in the image corresponds to the second lens galaxy.
