2 min read

Hubble Sees Further Back In Time Than Ever

Astronomers have pushed NASA's Hubble Space Telescope to its limits by finding what they believe is the most distant, ancient object ever seen in the universe. Its light traveled 13.2 billion years to reach Hubble, roughly 150 million years longer than the previous record holder. The age of the universe is 13.7 billion years.

The dim object, called UDFj-39546284, is a compact galaxy of blue stars that existed 480 million years after the Big Bang, only four percent of the universe's current age. It is tiny. Over one hundred such mini-galaxies would be needed to make up our Milky Way.

TRT: 00:34

Soundbite RT: 1:34

Garth Illingworth, Ames Research Scientist

Center Contact: Ray Villard, STSci, 410-338-4514

HQ Contact: Trent Perrotto, 202-358-0321

For more information: www.nasa.gov/hubble

Garth Illingworth, Ames Research Scientist

(00:16) –“Two years ago, a powerful new camera was put on Hubble, a camera which works in the infrared which we had never really good capability before, and we have now taken the deepest image of the universe ever using this camera in the infrared.”

(00:18) – “We are looking back through 96% of the life of the universe, and in so doing, we have found just one galaxy, but it is one, but it is a remarkable object. The universe was only 500 million years old at that time versus it now being thirteen thousand-seven hundred million years old. ”