The Euclid space telescope has revealed its first full-colour images, showing the universe as it has never been seen before. The five images, taken by the European Space Agency’s newly launched flying observatory, show the shining lights of distant galaxies. Scientists hope they will also prove useful in better understanding those galaxies, which includes some of the most massive structures in the known universe. Many of the galaxies have never been seen before. And much of the information in them could help explain mysteries such as dark energy and the expansion of the universe. The images released on Tuesday include one of the Perseus cluster of galaxies which shows 1,000 galaxies belonging to the cluster, and more than 100,000 additional galaxies further away in the background. Many of these faint galaxies were previously unseen, and some of them are so far that their light has taken 10 billion years to reach us. Another image captures the spiral galaxy IC 342, nicknamed the Hidden Galaxy, because it is difficult to observe as it lies behind the busy disc of our Milky Way, and so dust, gas and stars obscure our view. One of the new pictures is of globular cluster NGC 6397 - the second-closest globular cluster to Earth, located about 7,800 light-years away. Globular clusters are collections of hundreds of thousands of stars held together by gravity. These faint stars tell us about the history of the Milky Way and where dark matter is located. To create a 3D map of the universe, Euclid will observe the light from galaxies out to 10 billion light-years. The first irregular dwarf galaxy that Euclid observed is called NGC 6822 and is located just 1.6 million light-years from Earth. And the fifth image shows a panoramic and detailed view of the Horsehead Nebula, also known as Barnard 33 and part of the constellation Orion. Scientists hope to find many dim and previously unseen Jupiter-mass planets in their celestial infancy, as well as young brown dwarfs and baby stars, in this new observation. Professor Carole Mundell, ESA director of science, said: “Dark matter pulls galaxies together and causes them to spin more rapidly than visible matter alone can account for; dark energy is driving the accelerated expansion of the universe. “Euclid will for the first time allow cosmologists to study these competing dark mysteries together. “Euclid will make a leap in our understanding of the cosmos as a whole, and these exquisite Euclid images show that the mission is ready to help answer one of the greatest mysteries of modern physics.” Rene Laureijs, the ESA’s Euclid project scientist, said: “We have never seen astronomical images like this before, containing so much detail. “They are even more beautiful and sharp than we could have hoped for, showing us many previously unseen features in well-known areas of the nearby universe. “Now we are ready to observe billions of galaxies, and study their evolution over cosmic time.” Euclid was launched on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral in Florida on July 1. Named after the ancient Greek mathematician Euclid, the two-tonne probe made its way towards an area in space known as the second Lagrange point, where the gravitational forces of Earth and the sun are roughly equal - creating a stable location for the spacecraft. The UK has contributed £37 million towards the £850 million mission, with scientists playing key roles in designing and building the probe and leading on one of the two scientific instruments on board. Dr Caroline Harper, head of space science at the UK Space Agency, said: “These first colour images showcase Euclid‘s enormous potential, giving us incredibly sharp images of galaxies and stars, and helping us understand more about the impacts of dark matter and dark energy on the universe. “The UK has played an important role in the mission, leading on the development of the visible imager (VIS) instrument and on key elements of the data processing pipeline, funded by the UK Space Agency. “And this is just the start - UK researchers will be using Euclid data for many years to come to make significant new scientific discoveries about the composition and evolution of the cosmos.” Additional reporting by Press Association Read More Euclid space telescope releases first full-colour images of cosmos First full-colour images of universe captured by Euclid telescope revealed Watch again: ESA reveals first full-colour images of ‘dark universe’ from Euclid Tim Peake: Possibility of all-UK space mission a ‘very exciting development’ Strange purple light phenomenon ‘Steve’ spotted across UK skies Nasa sending VR headset up to ISS to treat astronaut’s mental health

Apple rejected a total of 1,679,694 App Store submissions in 2022, according to a transparency

West Virginia University students have staged a walkout to protest the proposed elimination of academic programs while showing support for faculty and staff whose jobs are being targeted

SUNNYVALE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 24, 2023--

LONDON The London Metal Exchange (LME), which faces lengthy delays to its trading technology revamp, said on Thursday

The Bloomberg Sustainable Finance Forum is under way, focusing on topics ranging from opportunities in the US market

By Helen Coster and Samrhitha A Comcast has moved up the date for the sale or purchase of

Taking a concept from idea to reality usually requires a bare minimum of design savvy,

An Indian tax panel on Wednesday decided to move ahead with the goods and services tax on online

The Biden administration and major consumer tech players are launching an effort to put a nationwide cybersecurity certification and labeling program in place

Apple is preparing an urgent software update in an effort to prevent its latest iPhone 15 from overheating, according to reports. Shortly after the launch of the iPhone 15 last month, owners began complaining that the smartphone becomes “too hot to touch” while performing certain tasks. The issue, dubbed ‘heatgate’ by some users, is related to a software bug tied to Instagram and other popular apps like Uber and the racing game Asphalt 9, according to Apple. The US tech giant said in a statement earlier this week that it had “identified a few conditions which can cause iPhones to run warmer than expected”, adding that it was “working with app developers on fixes that are in the process of rolling out”. Apple is now preparing to release a software update of its own to address the issue, according to MacRumours, with internal testing already underway. No official details about when the iOS 17.0.3 update might be released, but it is understood that it could be available as early as this week. Apple did not respond to a request for further information from The Independent. Meta released its own update for Instagram on Wednesday in an effort to prevent the app from overloading Apple’s A17 Pro chip. Users have recorded Apple’s flagship phone reaching temperatures as high as 47 C while gaming. Ian Zelbo, a reporter for 9to5Mac, wrote on X/Twitter that he experienced the problem while using the iPhone 15’s fast charging feature. “My iPhone 15 Pro Max is almost too hot to touch while fast charging right now,” he wrote. “I thought people were overexaggerating but no this isn’t great. Interestingly, if I’m holding it, the left side rail and a little of the back on the left side is what is the hottest by far... lines up perfectly with the logic board.” Apple dismissed theories that the overheating issue was caused by the device’s new titanium casing, or the change in charging adapter to USB-C for the first time with an iPhone. The company also warned that new iPhones “may feel warmer” during the first few days after setting them up due to increased background activity, though this is typical of all new smartphones. Read More Apple issues iPhone 12 update over radiation concerns Zuckerberg says Metaverse can bring back the dead – virtually Apple blames Instagram for overheating iPhones Tim Cook interview: Apple boss reveals his ‘aha moment’

Scientists have made an astonishing discovery that suggests bacteria contain memories to be passed on to future generations. Researchers at the University of Texas and the University of Delaware found that despite having no brain or nervous system, certain bacteria may be able to form memories and remember certain behaviours depending on the available cellular iron. When iron levels are low, bacteria can hunt for local iron in their environment, prompting scientists to believe its memory has evolved, according to Science Alert. "Bacteria don’t have brains, but they can gather information from their environment, and if they have encountered that environment frequently, they can store that information and quickly access it later for their benefit," Souvik Bhattacharyya, the lead author of the recent study said. "We show [...] that a prior experience of swarming is remembered when Escherichia coli encounters a new surface, improving its future swarming efficiency," Souvik explained. "An iron-based memory might offer the advantage of providing a hub connecting various stress responses such as antibiotic survival and biofilms." The 'memories' lasted for around four generations, before generally coming to an end by the seventh. "Before there was oxygen in the Earth’s atmosphere, early cellular life was utilizing iron for a lot of cellular processes. Iron is not only critical in the origin of life on Earth, but also in the evolution of life,” the study author went on to explain. "It makes sense that cells would utilize it in this way." How to join the indy100's free WhatsApp channel Sign up for our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.