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A Galaxy Died Just 700 Million Years After the Big Bang - And Science Can't Explain Why


Published on 2025-04-10 07:02:09 - SciTechDaily
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  • Astronomers using the James Webb Space Telescope have discovered the most distant quiescent galaxy ever seen - one that had already stopped forming stars just 700 million years after the Big Bang. This challenges existing models of galaxy evolution,

The galaxy JADES-GS-z7-01-QU, observed by the James Webb Space Telescope, ceased star formation just 700 million years after the Big Bang, presenting a puzzle to astronomers as it contradicts the expected behavior of early universe galaxies. This "dead" galaxy, identified through the JWST Advanced Deep Extragalactic Survey (JADES), showed no new star formation for over 700 million years, despite having enough gas to continue forming stars. The galaxy's rapid quenching, occurring in less than 100 million years, challenges current theories on galaxy evolution, as it is unclear what mechanism could have halted star formation so abruptly in the early universe. Researchers are now exploring whether such early quenching could be more common than previously thought, potentially reshaping our understanding of galaxy formation and evolution.

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[ https://scitechdaily.com/a-galaxy-died-just-700-million-years-after-the-big-bang-and-science-cant-explain-why/ ]