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Distant Galaxy GN-z11 in GOODS North Survey

Distant Galaxy GN-z11 in GOODS North Survey
Hubble Space Telescope astronomers, studying the northern hemisphere field from the Great Observatories Origins Deep Survey (GOODS), have measured the distance to the farthest galaxy ever seen. The survey field contains tens of thousands of galaxies stretching far back into time. Galaxy GN-z11, shown in the inset, is seen as it was 13.4 billion years in the past, just 400 million years after the big bang, when the universe was only three percent of its current age. The galaxy is ablaze with bright, young, blue stars, but looks red in this image because its light has been stretched to longer spectral wavelengths by the expansion of the universe.

About the Object

  • R.A. Position
    R.A. PositionRight ascension – analogous to longitude – is one component of an object's position.
    12h 36m 54.99s
  • Dec. Position
    Dec. PositionDeclination – analogous to latitude – is one component of an object's position.
    62° 14' 15.0"
  • Constellation
    ConstellationOne of 88 recognized regions of the celestial sphere in which the object appears.
    Ursa Major

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.
    Recent data were obtained from the HST proposal 13871, PI: P. Oesch (Yale University), G. Illingworth (University of California, Santa Cruz), I. Labbé (Leiden University), G. Brammer (STScI), R. Bouwens and M. Franx (Leiden University), P. van Dokkum (Yale University), D. Magee (UCO/Lick Observatory/University of California, Santa Cruz), I. Momcheva (Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics), R. Smit (Durham University), M. Ashby, G. Fazio, J. Huang, and S. Willner (Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics), V. Gonzalez (University of California, Riverside), R. Skelton (South African Astronomical Observatory), M. Trenti (University of Melbourne), and L. Spitler (Macquarie University/Australian Astronomical Observatory). The science team includes: P. Oesch (Yale University), G. Brammer (STScI), P. van Dokkum (Yale University), G. Illingworth (University of California, Santa Cruz), R. Bouwens, I. Labbé, and M. Franx (Leiden University), I. Momcheva, M. Ashby, and G. Fazio (Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics), V. Gonzalez (University of California, Riverside), B. Holden and D. Magee (UCO/Lick Observatory/University of California, Santa Cruz), R. Skelton (South African Astronomical Observatory), R. Smit (Durham University), L. Spitler (Macquarie University/Australian Astronomical Observatory), M. Trenti (University of Melbourne), and S. Willner (Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics).
  • Instrument
    InstrumentThe science instrument used to produce the data.
    HST>ACS/WFC, and HST>WFC3/IR
  • Exposure Dates
    Exposure DatesThe date(s) that the telescope made its observations and the total exposure time.
    February 11, 2015, and April 3, 2015
  • Filters
    FiltersThe camera filters that were used in the science observations.
    Main CANDELS/GOODS-N Field: HST>ACS/WFC: F435W (B), F606W (V), F814W (I), and F850LP (z), and HST> WFC3/IR: F105W (Y), F125W (J), and F160W (H) Grism Data (February 11, 2015, and April 3, 2015): HST>WFC3/IR: G141
  • Object Name
    Object NameA name or catalog number that astronomers use to identify an astronomical object.
    GOODS North Survey, GN-z11
  • Object Description
    Object DescriptionThe type of astronomical object.
    Farthest Galaxy Candidate from CANDELS/GOODS-N Field
  • Release Date
    March 3, 2016
  • Science Release
    Hubble Team Breaks Cosmic Distance Record
    Read the release
  • Credits
    NASA, ESA, P. Oesch (Yale University), G. Brammer (STScI), P. van Dokkum (Yale University), and G. Illingworth (University of California, Santa Cruz)

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Distant Galaxy GN-z11 in GOODS North Survey
Color Info
Color InfoA brief description of the methods used to convert telescope data into the color image being presented.

The main GOODS-N composite includes exposures acquired by the ACS and WFC3 instruments on the Hubble Space Telescope. Several filters were used to sample broad wavelength ranges. 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: F435W (B) + F606W (V) Green: F814W (I) + F850LP (z) Red: F125W (J) + 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.

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Universe Timeline

Universe Timeline

This graphic shows a timeline of the universe, stretching from the present day (left) all the way back to the big bang (right). The position of the record-breaking galaxy GN-z11 is shown not far from where the first stars began to form. The previous record holder's position is...

Redshift and Measuring Distance to Remote Galaxies

Redshift and Measuring Distance to Remote Galaxies

Galaxies emit light across the entire electromagnetic spectrum. Star-forming galaxies have areas of intense activity, but the light in the ultraviolet can be blocked by clouds surrounding the star-formation region. This causes a significant and identifiable drop in the light...

Zoom into GOODS North Survey and Distant Galaxy GN-z11

Zoom into GOODS North Survey and Distant Galaxy GN-z11

This animation shows the location of galaxy GN-z11, which is the farthest galaxy ever seen. The video begins by locating the Big Dipper, then showing the constellation Ursa Major. It then zooms into the GOODS North field of galaxies, and ends with a Hubble image of the young...

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Details

Last Updated
Feb 24, 2025
Contact
Media

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

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