James Webb has found a space object that has a time machine - the same galaxy has appeared in three different places in the same photo

James Webb pulled off a spectacular stunt. A space telescope took a photo of the same galaxy in three different places.

Here's What We Know

At first glance, it may seem like James Webb has done something magical, but it happens. It happens when the light from an object travels along multiple paths of varying lengths.

The Hubble Space Telescope once saw a galaxy in which a supernova star had flashed. It lies behind the RX J2129 cluster, which contains at least 13 galaxies and is 3.2 billion light-years away. Because of the uneven distribution of mass, light from the objects behind the cluster is delayed.

That's why when scientists pointed James Webb's lens at RX J2129, the space telescope captured the same galaxy three times. It showed up in the photo 320 and 1000 days after its debut appearance.

Scientists now know the luminosity of the supernova and how it changes over time. This will bring more clarity to theories about the rate of expansion of our universe.

Source: ESA