Astronomers Discover Almost 100 New Extremely Metal-Poor Galaxies

Astronomers Discover Almost 100 New Extremely Metal-Poor Galaxies

A team of astronomers has used data from the Dark Energy Survey Instrument (DESI) to identify 95 new extremely metal-poor galaxies. These galaxies are located at relatively low redshifts, meaning that they are closer to us than most of the known extremely metal-poor galaxies. This discovery could help us to better understand the early Universe and the formation of galaxies.

What are extremely metal-poor galaxies?

In astronomy, the term "metal" refers to all elements heavier than hydrogen and helium. Extremely metal-poor galaxies are galaxies that contain very little of these elements. This is because they formed shortly after the Big Bang, when there were very few metals in the Universe.

Why are extremely metal-poor galaxies important?

By studying extremely metal-poor galaxies, astronomers can learn about the conditions in the early Universe. These galaxies provide us with a snapshot of what the Universe was like billions of years ago, before stars had enriched it with metals.

The new discoveries

The new galaxies were discovered by analyzing data from the DESI, which is a powerful spectrograph that is being used to map the Universe in three dimensions. The DESI is able to measure the redshifts of galaxies, which tells us how far away they are from us. The new galaxies have redshifts of around 0.1, which means that they are about 1 billion light-years away from Earth.

The implications of the discovery

The discovery of these new galaxies could help us to better understand the formation of galaxies. The fact that these galaxies are located at relatively low redshifts suggests that they may be more common than we previously thought. This could mean that the early Universe was not as homogeneous as we once believed.

The future of research

The DESI is continuing to survey the Universe, and astronomers expect to find many more extremely metal-poor galaxies in the coming years. These discoveries will help us to piece together the puzzle of the early Universe and to understand how galaxies formed.

Additional details

The study was published in the Astrophysical Journal.

The lead author of the study is Dr. Steven Prochaska, an astronomer at the University of California, Berkeley.

The DESI is a collaboration of over 20 institutions from around the world.

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