APOD: 2023 January 18 – MACS0647: Gravitational Lensing of the Early Universe by Webb

Good morning, Rallypoint, and welcome to the January 18th edition of Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD): "MACS0647: Gravitational Lensing of the Early Universe by Webb." Recall that 'gravitational lensing' is the bending of light from a distant light source as it travels from the source to a viewer. This is caused by a distribution of matter of sufficient mass between the light source and the viewer. Einstein first predicted gravitational lensing in 1912. His theory was first confirmed by direct observation in 1979.

Fast forward now to September 2022. Courtesy of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), today's APOD shows the triple-reflection effect of gravitational lensing on distant galaxy MACS0647-JD. How distant? If distance estimates are correct, over 13 billion light years. Billion with a 'B'. This suggests that MACS0647-JD was formed some 400 million years after the Big Bang. Welcome to a time machine.