NASA's Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope could capture a mega-exposure similar to but far larger than Hubble's renowned Ultra Deep Field Image, as shown in this simulated image.
This Hubble discovery revolutionized our understanding of the early cosmos, showing galaxies that originated only a few hundred million years after the big bang.
This synthetic image visualizes what a Roman ultra-deep field could look like. The 18 squares at the top of this image outline the area Roman can see in a single observation, known as its footprint. The inset at the lower-right zooms into one of the squares of Roman's footprint, and the inset at the lower-left zooms in even further. The image, which contains more than 10 million galaxies, was constructed from a simulation that produced a realistic distribution of the galaxies in the universe. Roman could peer across more than 13 billion years of cosmic history, reaching back to when the universe was only about half a billion years old. Such distant galaxies are extremely faint, so Roman would have to stare at one spot in space for several days to collect enough light from them. The mission’s wide field of view will provide an incredible amount of data, helping astronomers find rare objects in the epoch of reionization. The large area Roman will observe will also show differences in galaxy properties based on their surrounding environment, allowing astronomers to better understand how early galaxies formed.
NASA Roman Grace Space Telescope
NASA Hubble just posted a simulated sample image from the forthcoming telescope on Twitter, demonstrating that it would be able to catch millions of galaxies.
A team of astrophysicists has created a computer simulation that shows how the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope may acquire a mega-exposure similar to, but considerably bigger than Hubble's iconic Ultra Deep Field Image.
Building on a classic ⭐
— Hubble (@NASAHubble) January 10, 2022
When it launches in 2027, @NASARoman will make wide observations of our universe with its enormous field of view.
One such observation could build upon Hubble's iconic Ultra Deep Field image, as seen simulated here!
More: https://t.co/iF5vaOpG7Z pic.twitter.com/dqke05ta5X
This new Hubble find added to people's understanding of the early cosmos by revealing galaxies that formed just a few hundred million years after the Big Bang.
Nicole Drakos, the study's lead author and a postdoctoral scholar at the University of California, Santa Cruz, stated in a NASA blog post that the space telescope has the unique capacity to picture extremely vast portions of the sky, allowing us to view the early universe's surroundings around galaxies.
Drakos went on to say that their research shows what a Roman ultra-deep field might teach us about the cosmos while also giving the scientific community a means to get the most out of such a program.
According to the Hubble Ultra Deep Field image, astronomers discovered that a little, seemingly vacant patch of the horizon is crowded with millions of galaxies, each harboring billions of stars.
NASA Telescope Can Look Far and Wide
Findings show that Roman might give insight on a long-ago cosmic phenomenon known as reionization. After the big bang, the universe was filled with a boiling sea of plasma, a charged particle that created a thick, ionized fluid.
When the cosmos cooled, the particles could unite to form hydrogen atoms, resulting in a neutral hydrogen fog.
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Because the fog prevented shorter wavelengths of light from traveling very far, which may have been emitted by young, forming galaxies or quasars, this period was known as the cosmic "dark ages."
By displaying broad views of more than 10,000 galaxies from the reionization period, which happened between 600 million and 900 million years ago, a Roman ultra-deep field program may aid scientists in learning more about the reionization period.
It can also give a thorough perspective of the environment surrounding these galaxies.
This might help scientists figure out what triggered reionization, when it happened, and if it happened in a uniform or patchy manner.
New Telescope To Check 13 Billion Years of Cosmic History
Furthermore, the aforementioned space telescope can see back in time to a time when the universe was only half a billion years old, encompassing over 13 billion years of cosmic history.
During the reionization stage, the mission's vast field of view would provide astronomers with a tremendous amount of data, allowing them to discover strange objects.
Furthermore, Roman's wide field of view may reveal changes in galaxy characteristics due to their environment, aiding scientists in better understanding how early galaxies developed.
While a Roman ultra-deep field has the same acuity as Hubble and can see back in time, it can cover 300 times the area, giving it a considerably better vision of space.
Brant Robertson, an astronomy professor at the University of California Santa Cruz and one of the study's co-authors, described the simulated images as "looking at a single piece of a 10,000-piece puzzle."
The Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, according to Robertson, might provide us with 100 linked jigsaw pieces, providing a far richer image of what the early cosmos was like and opening up new scientific options.
The Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, according to Robertson, might provide us with 100 linked jigsaw pieces, providing a far richer image of what the early cosmos was like and opening up new scientific options.
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