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Euclid Discovers Einstein Ring in Our Cosmic Backyard

Gravitational lensing happens when massive objects like galaxies warp time and space around them, forcing light to bend and brighten as it travels through space. In the image to the right, light bending around the elliptical galaxy NGC 6505 forms a ring that seems aligned with the galaxy as predicted by Albert Einstein’s general theory of relativity.

A sea of colorful stars and galaxies appear to swim in the vast blackness of space around a hazy halo at centre stage. In the middle of the image, the fuzzy-looking bulb of light in a warm shade of yellow extends around a small bright spot, nestled within a thin light circle that appears to be drawn closely around it. As we follow the central halo’s rim outwards, its brightness dims and blends smoothly into its surroundings. Here, extended discs of shades ranging from a warm purple to golden yellow, and piercing dots of light with sharp diffraction spikes are spread evenly across the image.

The ring of light surrounding the center of the galaxy NGC 6505, captured by ESA’s Euclid telescope, is an example of an Einstein ring. NGC 6505 is acting as a gravitational lens, bending light from a galaxy far behind it.

ESA/Euclid/Euclid Consortium/NASA, image processing by J.-C. Cuillandre, G. Anselmi, T. Li; CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO or ESA Standard Licence

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Legacy of Light: Exploring Cosmic Frontiers

How does the universe work? How is it changing, and what does its future hold? Is there other life in the cosmos awaiting our discovery? The answers to some of humanity’s most profound questions lie in the stars.

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Bullseye!

LEDA 1313424, aptly nicknamed the Bullseye, is two and a half times the size of our Milky Way and has nine rings — six more than any other known galaxy.

A large galaxy is at center, and a significantly smaller galaxy is to its left. The large galaxy, nicknamed the Bullseye, is mostly face-on, but the top appears slightly tilted away. It has several rings. Its circular core is bright white at the very center, but light yellow overall. Going outward, there are gaps between the rings. The core is surrounded by two slightly lighter yellow rings, which also appear to be overlapping. The next ring is slightly more transparent and yellow. The two or three rings that are farther out are bluer, sometimes with blue clumps. The widest ring is also blue, but also the most transparent. At 9 o’clock is a small dwarf galaxy. It is about the same size as the yellow core of the Bullseye. The dwarf galaxy is blue, with many dots. It looks like the edge of the Bullseye might touch the dwarf galaxy. Both galaxies are set on the black background of space, which is dotted with a range of galaxies in different shapes, colors, and sizes, along with one foreground star at left.

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