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Abell S1063

Abell S1063

Tracing Diffuse Starlight in Galaxy Cluster Abell S1063

Hubble's powerful sensitivity and resolution captures a soft blue haze, called intracluster light, among innumerable galaxies in the Abell S1063 cluster. The stars producing this glow have been thrown out from their galaxies. These stars now live solitary lives, no longer part of a galaxy but aligning themselves with the gravity of the overall cluster. Astronomers have found that intracluster light's association with a map of mass distribution in the cluster's overall gravitational field makes it a good indicator of how invisible dark matter is distributed in the cluster.

About the Object

  • R.A. Position
    R.A. PositionRight ascension – analogous to longitude – is one component of an object's position.
    22:49:17.69
  • Dec. Position
    Dec. PositionDeclination – analogous to latitude – is one component of an object's position.
    -44:32:43.8
  • Constellation
    ConstellationOne of 88 recognized regions of the celestial sphere in which the object appears.
    Grus
  • Distance
    DistanceThe physical distance from Earth to the astronomical object. Distances within our solar system are usually measured in Astronomical Units (AU). Distances between stars are usually measured in light-years. Interstellar distances can also be measured in parsecs.
    4 billion light-years

About the Data

  • Data Description
    Data DescriptionProposal: A description of the observations, their scientific justification, and the links to the data available in the science archive.
    Science Team: The astronomers who planned the observations and analyzed the data. "PI" refers to the Principal Investigator.
    Abell S1063 and MACS J0416 are part of the Frontier Fields Program. These data are from the HST proposals 12458 (PI: M. Postman, STScI), 13459 (PI: T. Treu, UCLA), 14037 (PI: J. Lotz, STScI), and 14209 (PI: B. Siana, UC Riverside).
  • Instrument
    InstrumentThe science instrument used to produce the data.
    ACS/WFC, WFC3/IR
  • Exposure Dates
    Exposure DatesThe date(s) that the telescope made its observations and the total exposure time.
    December 2005 - May 2016
  • Filters
    FiltersThe camera filters that were used in the science observations.
    ACS/WFC: F435W, F606W, F814W; WFC3/IR: F105W, F125W, F140W, and F160W
  • Object Name
    Object NameA name or catalog number that astronomers use to identify an astronomical object.
    Abell S1063
  • Object Description
    Object DescriptionThe type of astronomical object.
    galaxy cluster
  • Release Date
    December 20, 2018
  • Science Release
    Faint Glow Within Galaxy Cluster Illuminates Dark Matter
    Read the release
  • Credits
    NASA, ESA, and M. Montes (University of New South Wales)

Downloads

  • 1786 × 2000
    png (5.66 MB)
  • Full Res, 4158 × 4656
    tif (31.91 MB)
  • 893 × 1000
    png (1.48 MB)
  • Full Res, 4158 × 4656
    png (26.43 MB)
Abell S1063
Color Info
Color InfoA brief description of the methods used to convert telescope data into the color image being presented.

These images are composites of separate exposures acquired by the WFC3/IR and ACS/WFC instruments. Several filters were used to sample various wavelengths. The color results from assigning different hues (colors) to each monochromatic (grayscale) image associated with an individual filter. In this case, the assigned colors are: Blue: ACS/WFC F435W (B) + F606W (R) Green: ACS/WFC F814W (I) + WFC3/IR F105W (Y) Red: WFC3/IR F125W (J) + F140W (JH) + F160W (H)

Compass and Scale
Compass and ScaleAn astronomical image with a scale that shows how large an object is on the sky, a compass that shows how the object is oriented on the sky, and the filters with which the image was made.

Related Images & Videos

Galaxy Clusters Abell S1063 and MACS J0416.1-2403

Galaxy Clusters Abell S1063 and MACS J0416.1-2403

Tracing Diffuse Starlight in Galaxy Clusters Two massive galaxy clusters — Abell S1063 (left) and MACS J0416.1-2403 (right) — display a soft blue haze, called intracluster light, embedded among innumerable galaxies. The intracluster light is produced by orphan stars that no...

Compass Image for Intracluster Light in Galaxy Clusters Abell S1063 and MACS J0416.1-2403

Compass Image for Intracluster Light in Galaxy Clusters Abell S1063 and MACS J0416.1-2403

MACS J0416.1-2403

MACS J0416.1-2403

Tracing Diffuse Starlight in Galaxy Cluster MACS J0416.1-2403 Amid the bright light of its member galaxies, the galaxy cluster MACS J0416.1-2403 also emits a soft glow of intracluster light, produced by stars that are not part of any individual galaxy. These stars were scattered...

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Details

Last Updated
Mar 07, 2025
Contact
Media

Claire Andreoli
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center
Greenbelt, Maryland
claire.andreoli@nasa.gov

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