A galaxy stretched into a snake shape by a cluster's gravity acts as a natural magnifying glass

the gist

Gravity bends light, so a massive galaxy cluster can act as a natural lens for the galaxies behind it. The Cosmic Snake is a distant galaxy whose light is warped by the cluster MACSJ1206.2-0847 into a long arc. The lensing also magnifies the background galaxy, so Hubble can see detail that would otherwise be far too faint. Because the cluster bends light in several directions, the same galaxy appears as multiple images at different magnifications. Combining them lets astronomers study its star-forming clumps at several scales, and the highest-resolution views show that each giant clump is itself made of smaller clumps.

how it works

Mass curves spacetime, so light from a background object follows a bent path around a massive foreground object. When the alignment is close, the bending can stretch the background galaxy into an arc and form several images of it. Each image is magnified differently, which gives astronomers natural zoom.

so what

Lensing lets astronomers study early-universe galaxies that would be impossible to resolve otherwise. The finer structure of star-forming clumps helps explain how stars form in galaxies very far from us, long before the Milky Way existed in its current form.

ESA/Hubble · CC BY 4.0

Image: ESA/Hubble, NASA

source: ESA/Hubble ↗

historyWikipediaclassic1336–1565 · Karnataka, India

Hampi was once one of the world's largest cities, until its Vijayanagara capital was destroyed in 1565

the gist

Hampi is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Karnataka, India, with more than 1,600 surviving remains spread over 4,100 hectares. It was the capital of the Vijayanagara Empire from 1336 to 1565. Travellers from Persia and Portugal described it as a prosperous, wealthy and grand city with temples, markets and farms along the Tungabhadra River. By 1500 it was estimated to be the world's second-largest city after Beijing, and probably India's richest at the time. In 1565 a coalition of Muslim sultanates defeated the Vijayanagara Empire, its capital was conquered and destroyed, and the city was left in ruins. Hampi remains a religious centre, with the active Virupaksha Temple at its heart.

how it works

The city was built around a fortified core with temples, markets and water structures along the river, supplied by an extensive network of roads and waterworks. When the empire fell, the city was not rebuilt, so its stone monuments were left standing.

so what

Hampi shows how quickly a great city can vanish after a military defeat, and how a ruined capital can remain sacred. Its ruins give historians a view of medieval South Asia that few other sites can match.

fun fact

The name Hampi comes from Pampa, an old name for the Tungabhadra River.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia · text CC BY-SA 4.0

Image: Wikimedia Commons

source: Wikipedia ↗

2 min

politicsshortCNA2:01

False allegations about Singapore’s hand in Indonesia’s markets and a made-up meeting

from CNA

CNA Verify has found close to 400 posts pushing falsehoods tying Singapore to Indonesia’s stock market rout and to a secret meeting that never took place. Together, they drew nearly 12 million views, and some were circulated by accounts that appeared to be working in concert, across multiple social media platforms.

Here’s how the disinformation campaign targeting Singapore was uncovered.

on YouTube: CNA ↗