3D classifications for distant galaxies in Webb’s CEERS Survey (NIRCam image)

These are examples of distant galaxies captured by the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope in its Cosmic Evolution Early Release Science (CEERS) Survey.

Recent research of the CEERS field showed that galaxies frequently appear flat and elongated, like pool noodles or surfboards (along the top row).

Thin, circular disk-like galaxies, which resemble frisbees, are the next major grouping (bottom left and centre).

Finally, galaxies that are shaped like spheres, or volleyballs, made up the smallest fraction of their detections (bottom right).

All of these galaxies are estimated to have existed when the Universe was 600 million to 6 billion years old.

These results are still considered preliminary, because the team sorted images of galaxies into broad classes based on similar characteristics. (They did not classify their individual appearances since that would require detailed information from data known as spectra.) Much more analysis of many more distant galaxies is needed to fully determine which galaxy shapes and compositions existed in the early Universe.

[Image description: Six galaxies appear in boxes, three by two. The top galaxies are labelled with an elongated appearance. Two shown at lower left and centre are labelled disk-like appearance. The galaxy at lower right is with a labelled spherical appearance.]