The GN-108036 galaxy, pictured, dates back to 750 million years after the Big Bang, required 12.9 billion years for its light to reach Earth.
The Implications of Discovering a Galaxy almost 13 Billion Years Old
This galaxy was discovered by the Keck Observatory at Mauna Kea in Hawaii. Astronomers examined infrared observations taken by NASA's Spitzer and Hubble space telescopes. This galaxy's brightness was due to star formation with GN-108036 the most luminous galaxy discovered so far away. This is one of 40 galaxies found at a similar distance. Galaxies with redshifts are very distant and very young yet paradoxically today, it is the considered the oldest galaxy found to date. GN-108036 has a high redshift. Life could have evolved on GN-108036 in 5 billion years as it did on Earth.
The Hubble Space Telescope Image Accompanying this Article
The main Hubble image shows a field of galaxies, the Great Observatories Origins Deep Survey (GOODS). The Hubble and Spitzer image are observed to the right of the accompanying photograph. In the Spitzer image, infrared light is green and red. In the Hubble image, visible light is blue and green. Infrared light captured by Hubble's new Wide Field Camera is red. GN-108036 is detectable in the infrared and is invisible in the optical Hubble images, explaining its red colour.
Implications for Life of a 12.9 Billion Year Old Galaxy in the Universe
A planet-colonising, intelligent-life-containing spaceship could traverse the Milky Way galaxy at less than the speed of light in about 100,000 years, which is less than the age of the universe (15 billion years). This means the spaceship could have crossed the galaxy many times in the time available, in a few thousand years, or, in a mere 100 human generations. NG-108036 could have evolved intelligent life twice in 10 billion years with 2.9 billion years remaining to explore the entire universe.
Colonisation is exponential, so, in 10,000 years the number of colonised planets would double. There are 200 billion stars in our Milky Way galaxy, so there may be 1,000,000,000 habitable planets to colonise. This colonisation process could be completed in 1,000,000 years.
There is intelligent life in the universe, mankind is living proof. These calculations merely prove alien life could have evolved and spread throughout the Milky Way galaxy, ensuring life is evenly distributed throughout the cosmos. There is no proof this happened, however life thrives on the habitable planet, Earth. Other planetary systems are observable in the universe, however they are too distant for inter-communication.
Most of the Universe remains a mystery.
Sources
- Are we Alone? by Paul Davies, Penguin Books 1995
- Hubble Site Releases21/12/2011
Michael Manning - ' The best lack all conviction while the worst are full of passionate intensity' W.B.Yeats
