January 16, 2024
Astronomers have discovered the largest reservoir of water in space located approximately 12 billion light years from Earth. This reservoir is believed to have formed during the universe’s initial stages and is the first observation of water vapour in the early universe. According to scientists, most water present in the Milky Way is in the form of frozen ice.
The reservoir discovered surrounds a quasar named APM 08279+5255 and the water vapour in the reservoir is around 140 trillion times more than the amount of water in all of the Earth’s oceans. Quasars are enormous, remote celestial bodies that release huge amounts of energy. The black hole housed by the APM 08279+5255 quasar is extremely massive and releases as much energy as a thousand trillion suns.
Did You Know?
Quasars are much brighter than galaxies and some are bigger than our entire solar system.
