Some galaxies are massive enough to magnify the space behind them by distorting the light. This cosmic effect is called gravitational lensing, and these kinds of galaxies are known as lensing galaxies.

Some galaxies are massive enough to magnify the space behind them by distorting the light.

This cosmic effect is called gravitational lensing, and these kinds of galaxies are known as lensing galaxies.

Now astronomers have found the lensing galaxy farthest away from Earth using data from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope and the W.M. Keck Observatory in Hawaii.

The galaxy is reportedly 9 point 6 billion light years away, and has a mass 180 billion times greater than our sun.

Gravitational lensing allows astronomers to see deeper into the cosmos than they would otherwise be able to.

There are lots of lens galaxies, but finding one so far away from Earth will help experts understand how dark matter changes as a galaxy grows and ages.

Kenneth Wong, one of the scientists who announced the discovery, is quoted as saying: “By comparing our analysis of this lens galaxy to the more nearby lenses, we can start to understand how that dark-matter content has evolved over time.”


The research team thinks the mass of this most distant lens galaxy has continued to grow over the past 9 billion years by consuming nearby galaxies, including stars and dark matter.