ISTANBUL
Early test images from the Vera C. Rubin Observatory have revealed a surprising feature in the spiral galaxy Messier 61 (M61): a faint trail of stars stretching from the galaxy, suggesting it may have torn apart a smaller companion long ago.
The Vera C. Rubin Observatory, perched atop a mountaintop in Chile, is a new telescope designed to survey the sky in unprecedented detail. Its large camera can capture extremely faint objects, allowing astronomers to see features in galaxies that were previously invisible.
Nature reported on Friday that the discovery was made with the observatory’s massive new camera. Scientists refer to the feature as a “stellar stream” and say it is the first of its kind discovered by Rubin.
Messier 61, located in the Virgo Cluster, was first spotted in 1779 and has long been studied for its high rate of star formation and frequent supernovae.
According to the report, astronomers have used powerful telescopes, including the Hubble Space Telescope and the James Webb Space Telescope, to study the galaxy’s structure, but until now, the faint stellar stream went unnoticed.
The discovery was reported in the Research Notes of the American Astronomical Society.
