MoM-z14
| MoM-z14 | |
|---|---|
 Image of MoM-z14 taken with NIRcam on the JWST telescope. | |
| Observation data (J2000 epoch) | |
| Constellation | Sextans |
| Right ascension | 10h 00m 22.40s |
| Declination | 02° 16′ 23.19″ |
| Redshift | 14.44+0.02 −0.02[1] |
| Distance | 13.53 billion light-years (light travel distance) 33.8 billion light-years (proper distance) |
| Apparent magnitude (V) | 20.2 |
| Characteristics | |
| Type | Lyman-break galaxy |
| Notable features | Farthest confirmed galaxy discovered |
MoM-z14, as of June 2025, is the farthest known galaxy discovered in the universe with a redshift of z = 14.44 placing the galaxy's formation about 280 million years after the Big Bang. For the Cosmic Timeline, MoM-z14 would have been formed during the Reionization Era of the early universe, when neutral hydrogen began ionizing due to radiated energy from the earliest celestial objects.[1][2]
MoM-z14 is a remarkably luminous and compact galaxy. It has a mass of 108 solar masses making it similar in mass to the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC). It is currently going through a time of high star formation giving off lots of ionizing photons which travel through a virtually dust free interstellar medium (ISM). The surroundings of MoM-z14 are partially ionized.[1]
Discovery
[edit]It was discovered on 16 May 2025 by Rohan Naidu with the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST).[1] Prior to the JWST space telescope, there were no telescopes with large enough mirrors to detect light coming from these distant galaxies. The Spitzer telescope was an infrared telescope but was not large enough to detect MoM-z14. With the James Webb Space Telescope size and primary mission to study the assembly of galaxies, MoM-z14 was able to be detected.[3]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d Naidu, Rohan P.; et al. (2025). "A Cosmic Miracle: A Remarkably Luminous Galaxy at 𝑧spec = 14.44 Confirmed with JWST". arXiv:2505.11263 [astro-ph.GA].
- ^ Siegel, Ethan (May 21, 2025). "JWST breaks its own record with new most distant galaxy MoM-z14". Big Think.
- ^ Gough, Evan (May 22, 2025). Lock, Lisa; Zinin, Andrew (eds.). "The new, farthest galaxy has been found by JWST, only 280 million years after the Big Bang". Phys.org. Universe Today. Retrieved 2025-05-27.