Red, purple and white shining stars found in the Messier 78 region taken by Euclid
Euclid image of Messier 78 star region - photo from ESA-Euclid-Euclid Consortium-NASA
Scientists from Southampton say they are closer to understanding the mysterious forces which shaped the evolution of the universe after receiving the first findings from a satellite one million miles from earth.
Data captured by the Euclid satellite , which launched in 2023, has been released today by the European Space Agency in efforts to unravel the origins of the cosmos.
Astronomers from the University of Southampton were part of the international consortium behind the satellite and are analysing the data.
Professor of Astrophysics Francesco Shankar called Euclid’s findings “magnificent” and said they might reveal how galaxies and supermassive black holes evolved in the early universe.
He added: “Euclid has unveiled large numbers of supermassive black holes which are accreting gas and shining at the centres of galaxies.
“It is a promising step towards finally pinning down how these large monsters form and influence the evolution of their hosting galaxies.
“The spatial resolution of Euclid will allow scientist to set invaluable constraints on the morphological appearance of galaxies across cosmic time and in different environments.”
The Euclid satellite is on a six-year mission to map the structure of the universe by observing billions of galaxies.
Its aim is to shed light on dark energy and dark matter which scientists say account for 95 per cent of the cosmos.
Despite covering less than 0.5 per cent of the study area so far, Euclid’s data is already proving to be invaluable, said Professor Manda Banerji , one of the satellite’s scientists and also from Southampton.
She added: “We are already finding many new supermassive black holes which are hidden in the deep universe.
“Euclid is able to peer through dust and gas in galaxies to reveal new populations of black holes that are enshrouded within.
“Over its lifetime, the satellite will completely revolutionise our understanding of galaxies and the black holes within them."
Euclid’s space mission will last until at least 2029.
It will survey about one-third of the extragalactic sky outside the Milky Way – and will try to capture hundreds of millions of galaxies and stars over the same area.
The European Space Agency , which funded the project, said the quality of the images will be four times sharper than those taken from the ground.
Professor Mark Sullivan from the University of Southampton is an expert on supernovae, the powerful and luminous explosions of stars.
He said: “Euclid has allowed us to observe supernovae long after they have faded from the view of earth-based observatories, revealing the effects of various radioactive nuclides produced in these explosions.
“This opens a new window into understanding the physics behind supernovae and their origins.”
A larger Euclid data release is scheduled for October next year and will include results about the nature of dark energy.
For more about Euclid visit www.esa.int .
Read more about how the University of Southampton is pioneering space technology at www.southampton.ac.uk/aerospace .