A cosmic object in the shape of a glowing question mark has photobombed one of the latest images captured by NASA's James Webb Space Telescope.
The Webb telescope illuminates information about the origins of our universe, but the appearance of this mysterious object in the background of this image leaves more questions than answers. The cosmic question mark hasn't been closely observed or studied, so scientists aren't exactly sure about the object's origins and makeup.
It could be a merger of two galaxies that, at probably billions of light-years away, are much farther away than Herbig-Haro 46/47, said Christopher Britt, education and outreach scientist in the office of public outreach at the Space Telescope Science Institute, which manages the Webb telescope's science operations.
"And when that happens, they can get distorted into all kinds of different shapes - including a question mark, apparently."It is likely the first time this specific object has been seen, experts said, but the merging of galaxies into a question mark-like shape has happened before - including a backward version formed by the Antennae Galaxies in the Corvus constellation.
This integration is also the eventual destiny of our own galaxy, which will merge with the Andromeda galaxy in about 4 billion years, Britt said - but the shape they'll take is unknown.
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