Space telescope Euclid: Foundation for the Best-Ever 3D Map of the Universe published

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The Euclid Consortium and the European Space Agency have released its first major batch of data from the Euclid space telescope, capturing light from over a billion objects to create the largest 3D map of the universe, focusing on dark energy, dark matter, and cosmic structures. German research centres, including LMU in Munich and several Max Planck Institutes, provided key optical components and data processing, crucial for the mission’s success.

The data release, named DR1 Foundation, covers 13 months of observations, includes over 900 million galaxies, 15,000 strong gravitational lensing candidates, and 60 million quasar candidates, enabling unprecedented cosmic studies. Euclid’s space-based observations deliver the largest catalogue of strong gravitational lenses and extensive galaxy cluster data.

For the first time, it provides scientists with the puzzle pieces needed to begin constructing a detailed 3D map of the cosmos – crucial for solving the many mysteries of the dark universe. Continue