Dark and Distant Heavenly Bodies Revealing the Secrets of Star and Galaxy

[Mr. McD]

Dark and Distant Heavenly Bodies Revealing the Secrets of Star and Galaxy Formation

Today (21 July), British astronomers are releasing the first data from the largest and most sensitive survey of the heavens in infrared light to scientists across Europe. The UKIRT Infrared Deep Sky Survey (UKIDSS) has completed the first of seven years of data collection, studying objects that are too faint to see at visible wavelengths, such as very distant or very cool objects. New data on young galaxies is already challenging current thinking on galaxy formation, revealing galaxies that are massive at a much earlier stage of development than expected. These first science results already show how powerful the full survey will be at finding rare objects that hold vital clues to how stars and galaxies in our Universe formed.

http://www.pparc.ac.uk/Nw/ukidss2107.asp