Alaknanda Galaxy
| Alaknanda Galaxy | |
|---|---|
View of the Alaknanda Galaxy captured by JWST NIRCam. It was detected the presence of a dwarf spheroidal galaxy potentially satellite candidate near the Alaknanda Galaxy named UNCOVER DR3 ID 42811 with a redshift of 3.97.[1] | |
| Observation data | |
| Constellation | Sculptor |
| Right ascension | 00h 14m 05.68s |
| Declination | −30° 22′ 20.67″ |
| Redshift | 4.05 |
| Distance | 12 billion light years (light travel distance) |
| Characteristics | |
| Type | Spiral galaxy |
| Mass | 1.58×1010 M☉ |
| Number of stars | 10 billion |
| Size | ~10 kpc (33,000 ly) |
| Other designations | |
| UNCOVER DR3 ID 42812 | |
References: Astronomy and Astrophysics | |
The Alaknanda Galaxy (designated as UNCOVER DR3 ID 42812)[1] is a spiral galaxy about 12 billion light years away, in the constellation Sculptor. It was discovered in 2025 with NASA's James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). It was discovered by two Indian astronomers Rashi Jain and Yogesh Wadadekar from the National Centre for Radio Astrophysics.[2][3] It has been estimated that the large spiral galaxy existed just 1.5 billion years after the Big Bang. The discovery of the Alaknanda Galaxy was published in Astronomy and Astrophysics in November 2025.[4][1][5] NASA has realised a detailed documentary video explaining the theory for formation of the Alaknanda Galaxy.[6]
Etymology
The spiral galaxy was named after the Himalayan river Alaknanda in the Indian subcontinent.[5][4]
Discovery
The Alaknanda Galaxy was discovered by Rashi Jain and Yogesh Wadadekar while studying the JWST images of the galaxy taken through 21 different filters of the JWST's astronomical telescope.[7] While studying the images, they spotted a galaxy remarkably similar to Milky Way galaxy. They estimated that the spotted galaxy was formed apparently when the universe was 1.5 billion years old after the Big Bang.[8] The discovery was published in the journal Astronomy and Astrophysics.[1]
Location and structure
The Alaknanda Galaxy lies behind the massive galaxy cluster Abell 2744. The structure of the galaxy is spiral.[9] It has two sweeping spiral arms wrapped around a bright and round central bulge spanning 10 kpc (0.033 Mly) across.[8]
There are about 10 billion stars in the Alaknanda Galaxy. The galaxy is actively forming new stars, at a rate of approximately 60 M☉/year.[2] The stellar mass of the galaxy is 1.58×1010 M☉.[1]
Characteristics of galaxy
The star formation rate in the Alaknanda Galaxy is about 20 times that of the Milky Way.[9] It has been estimated that the half of the appeared stars in the Alaknanda Galaxy were formed in only 200 million years.[10]
See also
References
- ^ a b c d e Jain, Rashi; Wadadekar, Yogesh (2025-11-01). "A grand-design spiral galaxy 1.5 billion years after the Big Bang with JWST". Astronomy & Astrophysics. 703: A96. arXiv:2412.04834. doi:10.1051/0004-6361/202451689. ISSN 0004-6361.
- ^ a b "Alaknanda: JWST discovers massive grand-design spiral galaxy from the universe's infancy". Phys.org – via Phys.org.
- ^ "Galaxy Alaknanda: Ancient spiral discovered by Pune scientists; Milky Way-like structure; 12 billion light-years away". The Times of India. 2025-12-03. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 2025-12-07.
- ^ a b "Alaknanda: Indian researchers find galaxy like Milky Way from 12 billion years ago". www.bbc.com. 2025-12-04. Retrieved 2025-12-07.
- ^ a b "Twin of Milky Way galaxy discovered. Indian team names it Alaknanda". India Today. 2025-12-03. Retrieved 2025-12-07.
- ^ NASA Space News (2025-12-09). Record Breaking! Scientists Shocked by JWST’s Discovery of an Ancient Spiral Galaxy. Retrieved 2026-02-19 – via YouTube.
- ^ "Pune researchers find spiral galaxy like Milky Way from early universe". The Indian Express. 2025-12-03. Retrieved 2025-12-16.
- ^ a b Bakich, Michael E. (2025-12-05). "Astronomers discover a grand-design spiral that shouldn't exist". Astronomy Magazine. Retrieved 2025-12-07.
- ^ a b Explainers, FP (December 3, 2025). "Alaknanda: How Indian astronomers found a Milky Way-like galaxy".
- ^ "Alaknanda: JWST discovers massive grand-design spiral galaxy from the universe's infancy". EurekAlert!. Retrieved 2025-12-09.