【Covet: Island of Desire】

There are Covet: Island of Desirefunhouse mirrors in space.

Objects in the universe can be so massive — often clusters of galaxies — that they warp the cosmos, like a bowling ball sitting on a mattress. This creates a curved cosmic lens, bending and distorting light, while also magnifying and brightening the light. It's an invaluable natural telescope for astronomers, and researchers have recently discovered an extremely potent such lens (also called a "gravitational lens").

From our view on Earth, it's a rare alignment of galaxies. There's a foreground cluster of galaxies (the lens) located some 5 billion light-years away, and behind that, there's an impressive line of seven galaxies.

---

You May Also Like

---

---

"This is an amazingly lucky ‘galactic line-up’ – a chance alignment of multiple galaxies across a line-of-sight spanning most of the observable universe," David Schlegel, an astrophysicist at Lawrence Berkeley National Lab who coauthored the research, said in a statement. "Finding one such alignment is a needle in the haystack. Finding all of these is like 8 needles precisely lined up inside that haystack."

SEE ALSO: NASA scientist viewed first Voyager images. What he saw gave him chills.

The research recently published in the peer-reviewed journal The Astrophysical Journal. This unusual, warped cluster makes impossible deep space observations a reality. "By virtue of its ability to drastically magnify background sources, strong lensing allows for significantly deeper and further observations than otherwise possible," the researchers wrote.

Mashable Light Speed Want more out-of-this world tech, space and science stories? Sign up for Mashable's weekly Light Speed newsletter. By clicking Sign Me Up, you confirm you are 16+ and agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Thanks for signing up!

The cluster is labeled below. Here's what you're seeing:

- The cosmic lens: The most massive four galaxies in this weighty foreground cluster, 5 billion light-years away, are labeled "La, Lb, Lc, and Ld." For reference, a single light-year is nearly 6 trillion miles.

- Magnified galaxies: These distant galaxies, located between 7.6 to 12 billion light-years away (that's quite far; the oldest light in the galaxy is some 13.8 billion years old), are labeled 1 through 7. But they appear numerous times, as they're warped around the lens. Each repeated appearance is given a letter.

---

Related Stories

---

• Aliens haven't contacted us. Scientists found a compelling reason why.
• NASA spacecraft spots dead robot on Mars surface
• The best telescopes for gazing at stars and solar eclipses in 2024
• Webb telescope peers into our galaxy's outskirts, sees stunning scene
• If a scary asteroid will actually strike Earth, here's how you'll know

- Giant Einstein Cross: "Of particular interest is the discovery of an Einstein Cross – the largest known to date – shown in galaxy number 4’s multiple appearances (indicated by 4a, 4b, 4c, and 4d)," the lab wrote. "This rare configuration of multiple images around the center of the lens is an indication of the symmetrical distribution of the lens’ mass (dominated by invisible dark matter) and plays a key role in the lens-modeling process."

The labeled cosmic lens, showing the foreground galactic cluster and distorted seven galaxies. Credit: William Sheu (UCLA) / Hubble Space Telescope

It's been dubbed the "Carousel Lens," because the background galaxies form circular structures around the center, similar to a carousel. It wasn't easy to find. Observations from multiple telescopes and observatories, such as the NASA Hubble Space Telescope and The Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI), helped locate the lens and confirm its magnifying abilities.

"Clearly, there is much more to be learned from this system," the researchers wrote. "The coincidental alignment of seven galaxies and a foreground galaxy cluster can give us unprecedented insight into the Universe, whether it be high-redshift galaxies, cluster properties, or cosmology."

Topics NASA

• Deals
• Entertainment
• Digital Culture
• Shopping
• Tech
• Science
• Life
• Games

• How to cancel your Kindle Unlimited subscription
• Megan Rapinoe wants your Zoom calls to be about changing the world
• Netflix starts to bring streaming quality back to normal
• Slack was down and the timing couldn't have been worse
• Today's Hurdle hints and answers for April 17, 2025
• Elon Musk's Tesla factory drama is mostly resolved
• Slack was down and the timing couldn't have been worse
• Barbie debuts #ThankYouHeroes program, honoring first responders
• Best robot vacuum deal: Save $200 on Eufy X10 Pro Omni robot vacuum
• From Guy Fieri to Chrissy Teigen: The new celebrity chef

• The Obamas dancing at a Beyoncé and Jay
• Tesla is facing new racist workplace allegations from Black employees
• 'Handmaid's Tale' protestors march for abortion rights in Argentina
• Trolls thought I was a man. That saved me.
• Apple Pay closes a loophole to end support for the Russian payment service, Mir
• March for Our Lives holds DC protest to mark its fourth anniversary
• Trump's Walk of Fame vandal bailed out by dude who also took a pickaxe to the star
• FCC flags Kaspersky, Russian cybersecurity firm, as national security risk
• A viral Facebook post is seeking out the owner of a lost teddy bear
• 'Dancing Hermione' lip syncing as Ariana Grande will feed your soul

• Inside the Murky Process of Getting Games on Steam
• Sleeping woman being wheeled around campus is truly a bizarre sight
• Use these five free Google Meet features to get the best video calls
• Poco F2 Pro: Powerful Samsung Galaxy S20+ rival for less than half the price
• NYT Connections Sports Edition hints and answers for May 18: Tips to solve Connections #237
• Harry Styles is the king of answering questions in the vaguest terms possible
• Volvo's Polestar 2 with Google is actually on its way, unlike most new EVs
• Student describes the ‘90s as 'the late 1900s' and now we all feel old
• PSG vs. Liverpool 2025 livestream: Watch Champions League for free
• Giphy nervously assures internet it's not removing Mark Zuckerberg GIFs

• Parental Controls: How to Lock Down Your Kids' iOS Devices
• Instagram introduces new features to help create a more positive space
• Student describes the ‘90s as 'the late 1900s' and now we all feel old
• Bro, do you even stream? CrossFit strikes deal with Facebook Live.
• Climate change turns large green sea turtle population female
• Your internet provider is full of it on net neutrality. Now with proof.
• Uber will scan drivers' faces to make sure they're wearing masks
• Razer is deploying free mask vending machines in Singapore
• What cracked the Milky Way's giant cosmic bone? Scientists think they know.
• Avril Lavigne tweets photo, gets instantly trolled by conspiracy theorists