NOIRLab - Undergraduate Students Discover The Early Universe’s Brightest Gravitationally Lensed Galaxy

Gravitational Lenses magnify the light from very distant galaxies enabling astronomers to see much farther and learn about the universe’s distant past. At the University of Chicago, a group of undergraduate students used data from the Dark Energy Camera Legacy Survey (DECALS) and follow up observations from the Gemini Observatory to discover the early universe’s brightest gravitationally lensed galaxy. In this podcast, learn the fascinating story of how this gravitational lens was discovered and what we can learn about the early universe from this discovery.    Bio:  - Rob Sparks is in the Communications, Education and Engagement group at NSF’s NOIRLab. - Gourav Khullar is a graduate student at the University Of Chicago. - Michael Gladders is a professor at the University of Chicago.  ​ Links: NOIRLab Stories: https://noirlab.edu/public/blog/most-lensed-galaxy/ DECALS: https://www.legacysurvey.org/decamls/ COOL-LAMPS: https://coollamps.github.io/ https://news.uchicago.edu/story/uchicago-undergrads-discover-bright-lensed-galaxy-early-universe NOIRLab social media channels can be found at: https://www.facebook.com/NOIRLabAstro https://twitter.com/NOIRLabAstro https://www.instagram.com/noirlabastro/ https://www.youtube.com/noirlabastro   We've added a new way to donate to 365 Days of Astronomy to support editing, hosting, and production costs.  Just visit: https://www.patreon.com/365DaysOfAstronomy and donate as much as you can! Share the podcast with your friends and send the Patreon link to them too!  Every bit helps! Thank you! ------------------------------------ Do go visit http://www.redbubble.com/people/CosmoQuestX/shop for cool Astronomy Cast and CosmoQuest t-shirts, coffee mugs and other awesomeness! http://cosmoquest.org/Donate This show is made possible through your donations.  Thank you! (Haven't donated? It's not too late! Just click!) ------------------------------------ The 365 Days of Astronomy Podcast is produced by the Planetary Science Institute. http://www.psi.edu Visit us on the web at 365DaysOfAstronomy.org or email us at [email protected].