We
know that the universe is much larger than what we can observe
with our telescopes — but light from
the most distant galaxies has not yet had time to reach us
since they were first formed.
This image, taken with NASA's Chandra
X-ray Observatory in space, shows what may be the most distant
(and ancient) galaxies we can see. The dots are thought to be
x-rays emitted by enormously powerful black holes at the centers
of galaxies that are just beginning to form. In fact, the galaxies
may not yet contain stars that have begun to shine — or
they may be so distant that their starlight has been absorbed
by dust.
