Astronomers have made a groundbreaking discovery with the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), revealing an exceptionally large galaxy in the early universe. The galaxy, nicknamed the Big Wheel, is estimated to be 12 billion years old and is one of the largest galaxies observed in the cosmos.
The Big Wheel is a disk galaxy, similar to our own Milky Way, with clear spiral arms extending from its dense central region. However, unlike other galaxies, it grew rapidly without losing its distinctive spiral form. This challenges current understanding of galaxy formation and growth.
Studies of disk galaxies like the Milky Way and the Big Wheel provide insights into how galaxies form, grow, and evolve over billions of years. The discovery has significant implications for our understanding of the cosmic history of our galactic home.
The Big Wheel’s size and rotational speed are comparable to those of the largest “super-spiral” galaxies in today’s universe. Its rotation speed places it among the high-end galaxies on the Tully-Fisher relation, a well-known link between stellar mass and spin rate.
What makes this discovery even more fascinating is the environment in which the Big Wheel formed – an unusually crowded region of space with ten times denser galaxies than typical areas. This dense environment likely provided ideal conditions for the galaxy to grow quickly without disruption.
The finding was unexpected, with astronomers having less than a 2% chance of discovering such a massive galaxy in their survey. The discovery has revealed another mystery of the early universe, highlighting the need for refinement of current models of galaxy evolution.
Further observations and discoveries of massive, early galaxies like the Big Wheel will help unlock secrets about how the universe built the structures we see today.
Source: https://theconversation.com/youve-heard-of-the-big-bang-now-astronomers-have-discovered-the-big-wheel-heres-why-its-significant-252170