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An Einstein ring (likewise referred to as an Einstein-Chwolson ring or Chwolson ring) is produced as the light from far-off things, like galaxies, go by an exceptionally big mass, like a galaxy cluster or an enormous galaxy.
Close-up of the Einstein ring around NGC 6505. Image credit: ESA/ Euclid/ Euclid Consortium/ NASA/ J.-C. Cuillandre/ G. Anselmi/ T. Li.
This is the very first strong gravitational lens found in Euclid and the very first in an NGC item from any study.
In galaxy-galaxy strong gravitational lensing, the light from a far-off source galaxy is distorted and amplified by the gravitational field of a foreground lens galaxy, such that several pictures of the source galaxy are formed.
When the source is dealt with, that is, not point-like, and near to the predicted center of the lens in the source airplane a so-called Einstein ring is formed.
Both Einstein rings and lensed sources have incredible clinical worth and have actually been utilized in a wide range of applications.
“An Einstein ring is an example of strong gravitational lensing,” stated Dr. Conor O’Riordan, an astronomer at limit Planck Institute for Astrophysics.
“All strong lenses are unique, due to the fact that they’re so uncommon, and they’re extremely beneficial clinically.”
“This one is especially unique, since it’s so near to Earth and the positioning makes it really lovely.”
The ring of light surrounding the center of NGC 6505, recorded by ESA’s Euclid telescope, is a sensational example of an Einstein ring. Image credit: ESA/ Euclid/ Euclid Consortium/ NASA/ J.-C. Cuillandre/ G. Anselmi/ T. Li.
Utilizing deep imaging information from the Visible Camera (VIS) and Near-Infrared Spectrometer and Photometer (NISP) instruments onboard ESA’s Euclid spacecraft, in addition to spectroscopic information from the Keck Cosmic Web Imager (KCWI) at W.M. Keck Observatory, the astronomers found an Einstein ring around the center of NGC 6505, an elliptical galaxy around 590 million light-years from Earth.
The ring around the foreground NGC 6505 is comprised of light from a further out intense galaxy.
The background galaxy is 4.42 billion light-years away, and its light has actually been misshaped by gravity on its method to us.
“I discover it extremely interesting that this ring was observed within a widely known galaxy, which was very first found in 1884,” stated Dr. Valeria Pettorino, ESA Euclid task researcher.
“The galaxy has actually been understood to astronomers for a long time. And yet this ring was never ever observed before.”
“This shows how effective Euclid is, discovering brand-new things even in locations we believed we understood well.”
“This discovery is really motivating for the future of the Euclid objective and shows its great abilities.”
The discovery of NGC 6505’s Einstein ring is reported in a paper released in the journal Astronomy & & Astrophysics
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C.M. O’Riordan et al2025. Euclid: A total Einstein ring in NGC 6505. A&A 694, A145; doi: 10.1051/ 0004-6361/2024 53014
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