The James Webb Space Telescope has detected the oldest known galaxy in the universe.
It captured the GLASS-z13 galaxy that was formed about 300 million years after the Big Bang, which occurred 13.8 billion years ago.
This breaks the record set by its predecessor, the Hubble Space Telescope, when it spotted galaxy GN-z11, which formed 400 million years after the birth of the universe.
The discovery was described in a paper on arXiv, an open access site where reports are published.
“Discoveries from the James Webb Space Telescope have been pouring in since the release of its first full-colour science pictures last week,” New Scientist, the magazine that first reported the story, said on Twitter.
“This red dot is the oldest galaxy we've ever seen! The latest data from the James Webb Space Telescope has helped astronomers find the galaxy, which dates back to just 300 million years after the big bang.
“The galaxy, known as GLASS-z13, has broken the record for the oldest galaxy ever observed by nearly 100 million years.”
The $10 billion telescope was launched into space on Christmas Day, 2021, to observe galaxies formed after the Big Bang.
It is also studying the atmospheres of planets inside and outside of our solar system, so scientists can learn more about the evolution of the universe.
The first image from the telescope, revealed by US President Joe Biden on July 11, was of the galaxy cluster SMACS 0723 as it appeared 4.6 billion years ago.
The first full set of photos was published the next day and included the Southern Ring Nebula, Stephan’s Quintet (five galaxies) and the Carina Nebula.
Webb is far more advanced than Hubble because of its breakthrough technology, design and location in space.
It is placed in Lagrange Point 2, an area that allows it to orbit the Sun, instead of the Earth, allowing it to see greater distances.
20 images of the universe, from galaxy collisions to violent star deaths - in pictures
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This is the NGC 6302 planetary nebula - commonly referred to as the Butterfly Nebula because of its shape. The ‘wings’ are gas heated to nearly 20,000°C and it is tearing across space at more than 950,000 kilometres an hour. At the centre of the nebula is a dying star that was once about five times the mass of the Sun. The image was captured by the Hubble telescope in 2009. Photo: European Space Agency -
This is the heart of our Milky Way galaxy, captured by the Hubble telescope in 2016. It shows a tapestry of more than 500,000 stars and the nuclear star cluster, the biggest and densest star cluster in our galaxy. Photo: Nasa -
In 2019, the first image of a black hole was captured. The Event Horizon Telescope captured it at the centre of the Messier 87 galaxy. EPA / Event Horizon Telescope -
In 2022, the Event Horizon Telescope managed to take the first picture of a supermassive black hole at the centre of our galaxy, which is feeding on hydrogen gas. Photo: Event Horizon Telescope -
A picture of Saturn taken by the Voyager spacecraft in 1980. Taken from a distance of 13 million kilometres, it shows the planet’s moons, Tethys and Dione. Photo: Nasa -
An image of two galaxies colliding, fuelled an unusual triangular-shaped star-birthing. Captured by the Hubble telescope in 2022, the interacting galaxies are called Arp 143. Photo: Nasa -
This image features the enormous nebula NDC 2014 and its neighbour NGC 2020, which together form part of a vast star-forming region in the Large Magellanic Cloud in the Milky Way, about 163,000 light years away. Captured by the Hubble telescope, it shows turbulent stellar nurseries, where new stars are born. Photo: European Space Agency -
The James Webb Space Telescope showed the Carina Nebula, about 7,600 light years away. It revealed areas where stars were being born that other telescopes could not capture. Photo: Nasa / European Space Agency / Canadian Space Agency -
The James Webb Space Telescope captured the sharpest views of galaxy cluster SMACS 0723. The image shows the cluster as it was 4.6 billion years ago. Photo: Nasa -
Located 290 million light years away, Stephan’s Quintet, or NGC 7318B, is a compact group of five galaxies that was discovered in 1877. Four of them are locked in a cosmic dance of repeated close encounters. Photo: Nasa -
Taken by the Hubble telescope in 2015, this is the largest and sharpest image taken of the Andromeda galaxy, which will collide with our galaxy in about five billion years. Photo: European Space Agency -
Captured by Nasa’s New Horizons spacecraft in 2015, this image shows a region of Pluto that is rich in nitrogen, carbon monoxide and methane ices. Photo: Nasa -
A striking composite image of Earth captured by Nasa’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter while in orbit around the Moon in 2015.Photo: Nasa -
This image shows the polar ice cap on Mars. It was taken by the UAE’s Hope probe and processed by graphic designer Jason Major. Photo: Emirates Mars Mission -
The Whirlpool Galaxy is 31 million light years away. Taken by Nasa’s Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy, the image shows the galaxy's “arms”, which are actually swirling clouds of gas and dust where massive new stars are born. Photo: Nasa -
The Solar Orbiter, a European Space Agency probe built in the UK, captured images of the Sun in 2020 that show mini solar flares, called campfires, spread across its surface. The probe came within 75.6 million kilometres of the Sun. Photo: European Space Agency -
To celebrate Hubble’s 25th year in orbit, an image of star cluster Westerlund 2 was taken. Discovered in the 1960s, this cluster has some of the hottest, biggest and brightest stars known to humankind. Photo: European Space Agency -
This Hubble image shows the star-forming region NGC 3603. The cluster is thought to have formed about a million years ago. Photo: European Space Agency -
Taken by Nasa’s Chandra X-ray Observatory and Europe’s Very Large Telescope, this image shows the remains of an exploded star, an event called the supernova RCW 86. It is believed Chinese astronomers first observed this in 185 AD. Photo: Nasa -
The Hubble telescope took a picture of a galaxy hidden behind the Milky Way. The spiral galaxy, IC 342, is about 11 million light years from Earth. Photo: Nasa / European Space Agency
