Central Idea

The remarkable discovery of the star Earendel by the Hubble Space Telescope in 2022 has been further illuminated by the James Webb Space Telescope.

About Earendel

Earendel is the farthest star ever detected, observed within the first billion years after the big bang.
It’s a massive B-type star, more than twice as hot as the Sun, and a million times more luminous.
The star is part of the Sunrise Arc galaxy, detectable due to the gravitational lensing
Gravitational lensing is a natural phenomenon where the mass of a massive object bends and magnifies light from a background object.
The massive galaxy cluster WHL0137-08 acts as a “magnifying glass,” allowing telescopes to observe Earendel even though it’s distant.

JSWT discovery: The James Webb Space Telescope employed its Near-Infrared Camera (NIRCam) to build upon Hubble’s observations of Earendel.
Star’s Characteristics: The revelations from NIRCam showcase Earendel as a massive B-type star, surpassing our Sun’s heat by over twofold and radiating luminosity a million times greater.
9 Billion Light-Years Away: Situated approximately 12.9 billion light-years from Earth, Earendel holds insights into the early universe’s cosmic evolution.
Gravitational Lensing: Both Webb and Hubble harnessed gravitational lensing—a phenomenon where foreground galaxies magnify distant objects—to detect Earendel, with galaxy cluster WHL0137-08 acting as a cosmic magnifying lens.

Single Point of Light: Due to its immense distance, Earendel appears as a solitary point of light even on Webb’s high-resolution infrared imagery.
Snapshot from 1 Billion Years Post-Big Bang: Although Earendel remains a faint pinpoint, the telescope’s data indicates that we are witnessing the star as it appeared 1 billion years after the Big Bang.
Historic Perspective: This revelation pushes the boundaries of our knowledge, as the previous farthest observed star had been documented around 4 billion years post-Big Bang.