September 14, 2021

The galaxy cluster MACS J0138.0-2155 and the Requiem supernova

An article published in the journal “Nature Astronomy” reports a study on a supernova whose glow was distorted and multiplied by a gravitational lens. A team of researchers examined various images captured over the years by the Hubble Space Telescope after three images of the supernova AT 2016jka, dubbed Requiem, were discovered in 2016 archival data. As it’s normal, its brightness faded away until it disappeared but, according to the researchers, a fourth image of that supernova will be visible in 2037, again due to the distortion generated by the gravitational lens produced by the force of gravity of the galaxy cluster MACS J0138.0-2155, or simply MACS J0138.