Measuring motions in three distant galaxies

NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope images of the three galaxies studied by a team of astronomers who try to understand how galaxies formed when the Universe was half its current age (upper panels). The same galaxies were then studied with the FLAMES/GIRAFFE instrument on ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT) to probe the motions of gas in these objects (lower panels). Parts which are red are moving away from us, while those that are blue are moving towards us. By studying at these motions in detail, the astronomers try to read the history book of the Universe.

Credit:

ESO/Hammer et al.

About the Image

Id:eso0910b
Type:Observation
Release date:10 March 2009
Related releases:eso0910
Size:1960 x 1280 px

About the Object

Name:Galaxies, Hubble Space Telescope
Type:Early Universe : Galaxy
Category:Galaxies

Image Formats

Large JPEG
629.1 KB
Screensize JPEG
170.9 KB

Wallpapers

1024x768
260.5 KB
1280x1024
391.4 KB
1600x1200
537.0 KB
1920x1200
640.8 KB
2048x1536
770.4 KB

Colours & filters

BandTelescope
OpticalVery Large Telescope
FLAMES

Notes: The top images were supplied by the Hubble Space Telescope. FLAMES/GIRAFFE aboard the VLT provided the bottom pictures.