Scientists Find Galaxy 13.3 Billion Light-Years Away

[Steve Williams]

WASHINGTON (CBS DC) – The universe is filled with stuff — and a lot of it is very far away — but now scientists have a new record holder for the furthest galaxy from Earth.

NASA scientists found Galaxy MACS0647-JD by using the Hubble and Spitzer space telescopes. The young-looking galaxy is approximately 13.3 billion light-years away.

A light-year is the distance of how light travels in one year in a vacuum. Light travels at 186,282 miles per second and a single light-year is about 6 trillion miles. So in layman terms, MACS0647-JD is around 79.8 trillion miles away from Earth.


To add a wrinkle to this unfathomable distance, the universe is 13.7 billion years old. The light of MACS0647-JD needed to travel for 13.3 billion years to travel the entire universe and finally reach NASA’s space telescopes.

Or in short, MACS0647-JD’s light needed to travel the entirety of space and time.

The released photograph of MACS0647-JD only takes up a few pixels compared to the vastness of the galaxy. It is described as a “very young” galaxy and may have changed dramatically in the 13.3 billion years since it was formed.

The previous record holder was galaxy SXDF-NB1006-2, and was slightly closer at 12.91 billion light-years from Earth.

 

[treitz3]

"May" have changed dramatically in 13.3 billion years?

Tom

 

[Steve Williams]

It's right at the dawn of creation at 13.3B years away

 

[treitz3]

? Knock, knock, knockin' on Heaven's door...?

To think that something may have changed in 13.3 billion years is a little inconceivable to me. To say that what they have photographed does not reflect what it looks like now might be more appropriate IMO.

Tom

 

[audioarcher]

The average life span of a star is 10 billion years. Most of the stars in that galaxy will have burned out before their light even reaches here. That's a strange thought. If we could travel there in an instant would it still be there when we arrive?

 

[audioarcher]

The fact that light can travel that far in a vacuum is hard to believe. I wonder what it's limits are?

 

[Speedskater]

Is that math correct?
6,000,000,000,000 miles
x 13,300,000,000 light years
_________________
798 ????????

 

[audioarcher]

That's only 79,800,000,000,000,000,000,000 miles. Not sure if there is a name for that many zeros.

 

[audioarcher]

I looked it up. 79.8 sextillion.

 

[Speedskater]

Now the bad news, if you want to take a vacation to MACS0647-JD which was 13.3 billion light-years away, with inflation and the universe always expanding, your vacation trip will now be about 43 billion light-years.
About 258 sextillion miles.

 

[audioarcher]

Now the bad news, if you want to take a vacation to MACS0647-JD which was 13.3 billion light-years away, with inflation and the universe always expanding, your vacation trip will now be about 43 billion light-years.
About 258 sextillion miles.

Bummer. That makes space travel even more difficult. We will have to discover how to time travel as well as faster than light travel to get there.

I wonder how far away MACS0647-JD is from the big bang compared to us?

 

[Whatmore]

Bummer. That makes space travel even more difficult. We will have to discover how to time travel as well as faster than light travel to get there.

I wonder how far away MACS0647-JD is from the big bang compared to us?

Aren't we all the same distance ?

 

[audioarcher]

Aren't we all the same distance ?

If all the galaxies were the same distance from the big bang then how do you explain stars being spread out in the sky? Not to mention they are all at different distances from here.

 

[Whatmore]

If all the galaxies were the same distance from the big bang then how do you explain stars being spread out in the sky? Not to mention they are all at different distances from here.

If we are all some distance from an absolute reference point (eg the Big Bang) then that violates a whole lot of laws such as relativity.

I don't actually think its meaningful to ask where the Big Bang is anyway. That implies that it happened at a particular spot in an already existing universe. This stuff messes with my head

 

[Steve Williams]

If we are all some distance from an absolute reference point (eg the Big Bang) then that violates a whole lot of laws such as relativity.

I don't actually think its meaningful to ask where the Big Bang is anyway. That implies that it happened at a particular spot in an already existing universe. This stuff messes with my head

IMO the galaxies aren't the same distance as some are older than others (such as this one) which should be very close in age to the Big Bang itself

 

[audioarcher]

IMO the galaxies aren't the same distance as some are older than others (such as this one) which should be very close in age to the Big Bang itself

I'm no expert by any stretch. We have come a long way in figuring these things out but I think we still have a long way to go.

 

[Steve Williams]

IIRC, the Big Bang occurred 13.75 billion years ago so this is a very old galaxy arising soon after

 

[audioarcher]

Is there a time lapse model of the big bang theory? That would help us understand how it works better I think.

 

[Steve Williams]

If you're confused about the Big Bang theory Sean, have a look at The Big Bounce Theory

 

[audioarcher]

Thanks Steve. The Big Bounce Theory does make more sense to me. At least it seems like one of the possibilities.