Space Invaders in space

No, this is not the character of the game "Space Invaders", but the result of a strong gravitational lensing. What it is, as well as other remarkable paradoxes in this area of ​​space under the cut.


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This effect is one of the most visible evidence of Einstein’s general theory of relativity (and also often helps to examine distant objects that are difficult to distinguish in the usual way).



In fact, the “invader” is nothing more than a distorted image of a spiral galaxy in area 1.



The mass of the Abell 68 cluster distorts the rays of light coming from a more distant spiral galaxy like a conventional optical convex lens. Similar but less dramatic distortions in the form of long stripes are visible in the central region 4.

But this did not end all the surprises of the area. In the upper right corner you can see the "melting" galaxy. The drops appeared as a result of passing through the denser layers of intergalactic space (being cut off from the main gas cloud).

Photos in high resolution are available at space.com