May 24, 2006

Hubble captures 5 times lensed quasar

Hubble Captures a Five-time Lensed Quasar

The ESA reports on this spectacular lensed quasar image obtained by the Hubble space telescope. This is the first time a 5 times lensed object has been discovered.

Gravitational lensing results in an odd number of images - but some images are very weakly magnified and difficult to see, especially if the image is close to the lensing object. In this case the geometry is quite good and the fifth image is discernable from the lensing object. The five images of the distant quasar are marked by blue circles.

Also shown are three lensed images of a background galaxy, marked by red circles, and a distant supernova marked by the yellow circle.

Full story:European Space Agency

Some papers on gravitational lensing from the arXiv and elsewhere

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