DARMSTADT: The first images from Europe’s Euclid space telescope were released on Tuesday, showing a nebula resembling a horse’s head, never-before-seen distant galaxies and even “circumstantial evidence” of elusive dark matter.

Euclid blasted off in July on the world’s first-ever mission aiming to investigate the enduring cosmic mysteries of dark matter and dark energy.

It will do so partly by charting one third of the sky — encompassing a mind-boggling two billion galaxies — to create what has been billed as the most accurate 3D map of the universe ever.

After joining fellow space telescope James Webb at a stable hovering spot around 1.5 million kilometres from Earth, Euclid started sending back its first observations. The first five images were unveiled during a press conference at the European Space Operations Centre in Darmstadt, Germany.

European Space Agency chief Josef Aschbacher praised the more than 3,600 people who contributed to the project, hailing “a milestone for European science and exploration”.

Published in Dawn, November 8th, 2023