A study reveals where the first light in the universe came from

Liputan6.com, Jakarta – A new study reveals the source the first light of the world. This research was published in the journal Nature in February 2024.

This research was led by Iryna Chemerynska, an astronomer from the Institut d’Astrophysique de Paris, and her research team. Launching Science Alert Wednesday (11/13/2024), researchers found that dwarf galaxies played an important role in creating the first light in universe.

According to this study, the source of light that first spread freely in space came from small galaxies called “dwarf galaxies”. Chemerynska explained that dwarf galaxies play a vital role in emitting ionizing photons that help clear the hydrogen gap that prevents light from moving freely in the universe.

In the early period after the Big Bang, space was filled with a very hot and dense cloud of hydrogen and plasma. In this situation, many ionic particles such as free electrons and protons float in space, making it impossible for light to penetrate the intestine.

However, about 300,000 years after the Big Bang, as the universe began to cool, protons and electrons began to combine to form neutral hydrogen gas and some helium. The first stars that formed this dwarf galaxy then began to emit strong radiation that would work in hydrogen gas.

This process, known as cosmic reionization, causes neutral hydrogen gas to change to ionized plasma, which allows light to begin spreading freely throughout the universe. This reionization process not only changes the properties of hydrogen gas, but also opens the way for light to radiate and reveal a universe that was previously hidden in darkness. .

To confirm their findings, the researchers used the highly advanced James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). Observations via JWST allowed the research team to study this reionization process in greater depth and found that dwarf galaxies played an important role in starting the process of clearing hydrogen gas, which allowed the first light to appear in the universe.

(Tiffany)