Picture of the Day - Close-up of Star Factories in Distant Universe

For the first time, astronomers have made direct measurements of the size and brightness of regions of star-birth in a very distant galaxy, thanks to a chance discovery with the APEX telescope.



The galaxy is so distant, and its light has taken so long to reach us, that we see it as it was 10 billion years ago. A cosmic ?gravitational lens? is magnifying the galaxy, giving us a close-up view that would otherwise be impossible. This lucky break reveals a hectic and vigorous star-forming [...]

Full story at http://spacefellowship.com/news/art19208/picture-of-the-day-close-up-of-star-factories-in-distant-universe.html