Galaxy Cluster SDSS J1336-0331

At first glance, it may seem as though this image was taken through a faulty lens, but the mind-bending distortions visible in this Hubble Space Telescope image are actually caused by a cosmic phenomenon. The bright object at the center of the frame is the galaxy cluster SDSS J1336-0331. The enormous gravitational influence of the cluster warps the very shape and fabric of its environment (the space-time around it), creating an effect known as strong gravitational lensing. Through this effect, the light from background galaxies along the same line of sight is bent into fantastic arcs. This effect is very useful for studying distant background galaxies.