It’s not every day the universe surprises astronomers. But a recent discovery using the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has done just that. A galaxy from the early cosmos appears to mirror our Milky Way in shape, size, and structure—something no one expected to see so soon.
Ancient Light Reveals a Familiar Shape
Astronomers have spotted the farthest spiral galaxy ever seen. Its light has travelled 12.8 billion years to reach Earth. That means we are seeing the galaxy as it was only 1 billion years after the Big Bang.
The galaxy Zhúlóng defies conventional wisdom. It was originally believed by scientists that spiral galaxies formed over billions of years. It was thought that early galaxies lacked distinct forms and were chaotic. The spiral arms, centre bulge, and huge star-forming disc, however, are already visible in Zhúlóng.
Zhúlóng, meaning "Torch Dragon" in Chinese, was named after a mythical red dragon. In legend, the dragon controls light and time—symbols that suit this cosmic find.
A Close Match to the Milky Way
Zhúlóng’s disc stretches 60,000 light-years across. It holds a mass equal to 100 billion suns. That is close to the Milky Way’s disc, which is around 100,000 light-years wide and weighs about 46 billion solar masses.
“What’s striking is how much it resembles our galaxy,” said Mengyuan Xiao, researcher at the University of Geneva. Xiao led the team that made the discovery.
The galaxy was spotted during JWST’s ANORAMIC survey (GO-2514). This programme uses a “pure parallel” mode to capture extra data while observing other targets. That helped astronomers map more of the sky and find rare objects like Zhúlóng.
New Tools, New Clues
Christina Williams of NOIRLab leads the ANORAMIC survey. She explained how this method aids the search. “It helps JWST cover big areas quickly,” she said. “That’s vital to finding large galaxies, which are very rare.”
The discovery offers a new way to test galaxy formation models. Scientists now plan to study Zhúlóng in more detail. They may use the Atacama Large Millimetre Array (ALMA) in Chile. ALMA’s 66 radio telescopes can reveal more about the galaxy’s origin and structure.
“This is changing how we see the early universe,” said Pascal Oesch of the University of Geneva, part of the research team.
A Look into Cosmic History
The study was published on Wednesday, April 16, in the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics. As telescopes reach farther, more ancient secrets may come to light. For now, Zhúlóng stands as a reminder—sometimes, the cosmos holds mirrors to our own galaxy in the most unexpected places.
Discover the latest Business News, Sensex, and Nifty updates. Obtain Personal Finance insights, tax queries, and expert opinions on Moneycontrol or download the Moneycontrol App to stay updated!
