Scientists reveal the first data from the Euclid telescope, providing a snapshot of cosmic history

Scientists have released the first set of scientific data captured by the Euclid telescope, showing an exciting glimpse into the universe’s distant past.

Launched in July 2023, the telescope is part of the Dark Energy Satellite Mission, which aims to map the dark universe.

Led by the European Space Agency in collaboration with the Euclid Consortium – which includes astronomers from the University of Manchester in leading positions – the mission aims to unravel the mysteries of dark matter and dark energy and reveal how and why the universe is the way it is today. day looks as it looks now. .

Early observations, described in a series of scientific papers published today, include five never-before-seen images of the universe.

The papers also describe several new discoveries, including free-floating newborn planets, newly identified extragalactic star clusters, new low-mass dwarf galaxies in a nearby galaxy cluster, the distribution of dark matter and intracluster light in galaxy clusters, and very distant bright galaxies from the first billion years of the universe.

The findings provide insight into the unprecedented power of the Euclid Telescope, which is designed to provide the most accurate map of our universe over time and demonstrate Euclid’s ability to unlock the secrets of the cosmos.

Christopher Conselice, professor of extragalactic astronomy at the University of Manchester, said: ‘Euclid will completely revolutionize our view of the universe. These results are already revealing important new findings about local galaxies, new unknown dwarf galaxies, exoplanets and some of the first. These results are just the tip of the iceberg in terms of what will happen. Soon, Euclid will discover unknown details of dark energy and provide a complete picture of how galaxy formation took place throughout cosmic time.

Michael Brown, professor of astrophysics at the University of Manchester, added: ‘Euclid’s exceptional data across a large part of the sky promises to revolutionize our understanding of dark energy. It is extremely exciting to be part of the team working to extract these key scientific results.”

The Early Release Observations program was conducted during Euclid’s first months in space as a first look at the depth and diversity of science Euclid will provide. A total of 24 hours were set aside to target 17 specific astronomical objects, from nearby gas and dust clouds to distant galaxy clusters, providing stunning images that are invaluable to scientific research. In just one day, Euclid produced a catalog of more than 11 million objects in visible light and another five million in infrared light.

The images published today follow the return of the space telescope’s first color images of the cosmos in November 2023.

In addition to contributing to the mission’s primary objectives, scientists from the University of Manchester, in collaboration with the University of Massachusetts Amherst, conducted a preliminary study of data from distant galaxies. The red galaxies in the image show the cluster, which acts as a magnifying glass to reveal more distant sources behind it. A total of 29 galaxies have been discovered that provide insight into the first billion years of the universe.

Dr. Rebecca Bowler, Ernest Rutherford Fellow at the University of Manchester, said: “In these spectacular images we can see galaxies that were previously invisible, because the most distant galaxies can only be discovered using the longer near-infrared wavelengths observed by Euclid This first-look data has been invaluable in testing our search algorithms and identifying challenges, such as the confusion of distant galaxies with brown dwarfs in our own Milky Way, before we start working on the key data later this year.

‘What’s amazing is that these images cover an area of ​​less than 1% of the entire deep observations, showing that we expect to detect thousands of early galaxies with Euclid in the coming years, which will be revolutionary in understanding how and when galaxies form. formed after the Big Bang.”

The images obtained by Euclid are at least four times sharper than the images that can be made with ground-based telescopes. They cover large areas of the sky at an unparalleled depth and see far into the distant universe using both visible and infrared light.

The next data release from the Euclid Consortium will focus on Euclid’s key scientific objectives. An initial global rapid release is currently planned for March 2025, while a broader data release is planned for June 2026. At least three other rapid releases and two other data releases are expected before 2031, which corresponds to a few months after the end of the period of Euclid. initial investigation.

The Euclid Consortium has more than 2,600 members, including more than 1,000 researchers from more than 300 laboratories in 15 European countries, plus Canada, Japan and the United States, covering various areas in astrophysics, cosmology, theoretical physics and particle physics.

Josef Aschbacher, Director General of ESA, said: “Euclid demonstrates European excellence in cutting-edge science and cutting-edge technology, and demonstrates the importance of international cooperation.

“The mission is the culmination of many years of hard work from scientists, engineers and industry across Europe and from members of the Euclid scientific consortium around the world, all brought together by ESA. They can be proud of this achievement – ​​the results are no small feat for such an ambitious mission and such complex fundamental science. Euclid is just at the beginning of his exciting journey to map the structure of the universe.”