Compact Galaxy’s Discovery Shows Webb Telescope’s ‘Amazing’ Power

Using first-of-their-kind observations from the James Webb Space Telescope, researchers detected a unique galaxy highly compact but with star formation still at a rate similar to our much-larger Milky Way existing about 13.3 billion years ago that could help astronomers learn more about galaxies that were present relatively shortly after the Big Bang. ESA/Webb, NASA & CSA, P. Kelly/Handout via Reuters

WASHINGTON—The detection of a highly compact galaxy that formed relatively soon after the Big Bang and displayed an impressive rate of star formation is the latest example of how the James Webb Space Telescope is reshaping our understanding of the early universe.

Scientists said the galaxy, dating to 13.3 billion years ago, has a diameter of approximately 100 light-years—about 1,000 times smaller than the Milky Way—but forms new stars at a rate very similar to that of our much-larger present-day galaxy. A light-year is the distance light travels in a year, 5.9 trillion miles (9.5 trillion km).