NASA’s Webb Telescope Unveils Mystery Behind Phoenix Galaxy Cluster’s Extreme Star Formation
A groundbreaking study using NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has provided new insights into the Phoenix galaxy cluster, revealing the key process behind its unexpected starburst activity.
Scientists from MIT and other institutions have discovered that the cluster’s central galaxy is undergoing extreme cooling, fueling an unusually high rate of star formation—far beyond what astronomers would expect for a system of its age.
The Phoenix cluster, located 5.8 billion light-years away, is the largest known galaxy cluster of its kind. Typically, such massive clusters are "red and dead," meaning they no longer form stars. However, researchers previously observed that the central galaxy was producing stars at an astonishing rate of 1,000 per year—far exceeding the norm.
Using JWST’s infrared capabilities, researchers mapped the presence of “warm” gas in the cluster’s core, bridging the gap between its previously observed hot and ultracold gas phases. This discovery confirms that the gas is cooling within the cluster itself, rather than being funneled in from other galaxies.
“For the first time, we have a complete picture of the hot-to-warm-to-cold process of star formation, something never before observed in any galaxy,” said Michael Reefe, lead author and physics graduate student at MIT’s Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research.
The findings suggest that Phoenix may represent a unique phase that all galaxy clusters undergo at some point, or it could be an outlier with conditions unlike any other known system. Scientists are now working to determine why this particular cluster is experiencing such an intense starburst.
“This new work has given us a fresh way to observe and understand these systems,” said MIT astrophysicist Michael McDonald, a co-author of the study. “We now understand what is driving this star formation—but the question remains: why is Phoenix different?”
The study, published in Nature, opens new doors for exploring the cooling mechanisms of galaxy clusters and their impact on cosmic evolution.
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