Galaxy Cluster SDSS J1152+3313

This Hubble Space Telescope image demonstrates the immense effects of gravity; more specifically, it shows the effects of gravitational lensing caused by a cluster of galaxies called SDSS J1152+3313. Gravitational lenses possess immense masses that warp their surroundings and bend the light from faraway objects into rings, arcs, streaks, blurs, and other odd shapes. This lens, however, is not only warping the appearance of distant galaxies, it is also amplifying their light, making them appear much brighter than they would be without the lens.