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Evidence against a redshift z > 6 for the galaxy STIS123627+621755
D Stern1, P Eisenhardt, H Spinrad
1Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena 91109, USA. stern@zwolfkinder.jpl.nasa.gov
Nature
|December 16, 2000
Summary
Galaxies at high redshifts are crucial for understanding early galaxy formation. New observations of STIS123627+621755 contradict its previously suggested redshift of 6.68, indicating it is likely closer.
Area of Science:
- Astronomy and Astrophysics
- Cosmology
Background:
- Identifying distant galaxies offers direct insights into early galaxy formation.
- High-redshift galaxies (z > 5) are faint, making data interpretation and identification challenging due to low signal-to-noise ratios.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the redshift of the galaxy source STIS123627+621755, previously proposed to be at z = 6.68.
- To verify the spectral energy distribution and observational properties of STIS123627+621755 at high redshift.
Main Methods:
- Conducted optical and near-infrared observations of the galaxy source STIS123627+621755.
- Analyzed the detectability of the galaxy at 6,700 Å and its non-detectability at 1.2 microm.
Main Results:
- The galaxy STIS123627+621755 was detected at 6,700 Å.
- The galaxy was not detected at 1.2 microm, which contradicts expectations for a redshift of z ≈ 6.68.
- The observational data strongly suggest a redshift lower than 6 for STIS123627+621755.
Conclusions:
- The observed optical and near-infrared data challenge the previously assigned redshift of 6.68 for STIS123627+621755.
- The findings necessitate a revision of the redshift for STIS123627+621755, placing it at z < 6.
- This study highlights the difficulties in identifying and interpreting data from extremely distant galaxies.
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