Light from an extremely distant spiral galaxy was bent and magnified by the gravity of a member of the galaxy cluster SMACSJ0028.2-7537 into a ring-like structure, called an Einstein ring.

Einstein rings, also known as Einstein-Chwolson rings or Chwolson rings, occur when light from a very distant object is bent about a massive intermediate object.

“This is possible because spacetime, the fabric of the Universe itself, is bent by mass, and therefore light traveling through space and time is bent as well,” said University of Liège astronomer Guillaume Mahler and colleagues.

“This effect is much too subtle to be observed on a local level, but it sometimes becomes clearly observable when dealing with curvatures of light on enormous, astronomical scales.”

“Such as when the light from one galaxy is bent around another galaxy or galaxy cluster.”

“When the lensed object and the lensing object are perfectly aligned, the result is the distinctive Einstein ring.”

“This appears as a full circle or a partial circle of light around the lensing object, depending on the precision of the alignment.”

“Objects like these are the ideal laboratory in which to research galaxies too faint and distant to otherwise see.”

The new image was captured by Webb’s NIRCam (Near-InfraRed Camera) instrument as part of the Strong Lensing and Cluster Evolution (SLICE) survey.

“The lensing galaxy at the center of this Einstein ring is an elliptical galaxy, as can be seen from the galaxy’s bright core and smooth, featureless body,” the astronomers said.

“This galaxy belongs to a galaxy cluster named SMACSJ0028.2-7537.”

“The lensed galaxy wrapped around the elliptical galaxy is a spiral galaxy.”

“Even though its image has been warped as its light traveled around the galaxy in its path, individual star clusters and gas structures are clearly visible.”