A Glimpse into the Cosmic Dawn: Maisie's Galaxy Identified as One of Universe's Earliest

The introduction of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has played a crucial role in uncovering the complex mysteries hidden in the cosmos. Every time astronomers have the opportunity to observe remarkable cosmic events, it adds to our understanding of the universe and helps shape humanity's knowledge of it.

The James Webb Space Telescope (JSWT) has enabled astronomers to discover one of the most ancient galaxies known in the universe, named Maisie's Galaxy. This celestial object came into existence approximately 390 million years following the monumental occurrence known as the Big Bang, a remarkable milestone given that the age of the universe is estimated to be 13.77 billion years.

Maisie's Galaxy gets its name as a tribute to the daughter of the lead researcher of the project, Steven Finkelstein , who is a skilled astronomer associated with the University of Texas at Austin.

The original picture was taken in June 2022 as a component of the Cosmic Evolution Early Release Science Survey (CEERS). Recent verification confirms that the galaxy identified during the previous summer is indeed one of the most ancient ever found.

Steven Finkelstein remarked, “The exciting thing about Maisie’s galaxy is that it was one of the first distant galaxies identified by JWST, and of that set, it’s the first to actually be spectroscopically confirmed.”

This cosmic entity is renowned as one of the four earliest galaxies detected and confirmed by astronomers.

Pablo Arrabal Haro, a postdoctoral research associate associated with the National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory, led the recent analysis.

The CEERS team is currently evaluating around 10 more galaxies that might date back to an era before the existence of Maisie's Galaxy.

Studying the time framework of galaxies originating from the early universe is exceptionally difficult due to the universe's ongoing expansion at an accelerating rate. To determine the velocity of objects located outside our galaxy, a carefully considered approach is required.

Astronomers use redshift calculations to determine the age of these celestial objects. Redshift calculations involve measuring how much an object's color has shifted due to its movement away from our point of view.

As the universe continues to stretch and expand, peering deeper into its history corresponds to studying increasingly higher redshift values. In the past, redshift estimates were obtained through photometry, a method that involves measuring the brightness of the light using different broad frequency filters.

The provided estimates were calculated using data collected by CEERS during the telescope's first observation season.

Finkelstein noted that Maisie’s Galaxy presented an intriguing case, stating, “Of the many tens of high redshift candidates that have been observed spectroscopically, this is the only instance of the true redshift being much less than our initial guess.”