A follow-up observation by NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope shows a field containing a microlensing event that was captured by the Optical Gravitational Lensing Experiment (OGLE) in 2013. This provides an example of how a Hubble image could be used to analyze future microlensing events spotted by NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope.

In gravitational microlensing, the gravity of a foreground object acts as a lens, magnifying and distorting the light of a background star when the two objects align in the sky.

About the Object

  • R.A. Position

    R.A. PositionRight ascension – analogous to longitude – is one component of an object’s position.

    17:52:07.49 

  • Dec. Position

    Dec. PositionDeclination – analogous to latitude – is one component of an object’s position.

    -29:50:46.0

  • Constellation

    ConstellationOne of 88 recognized regions of the celestial sphere in which the object appears.

    Sagittarius

  • Distance

    DistanceThe physical distance from Earth to the astronomical object. Distances within our solar system are usually measured in Astronomical Units (AU). Distances between stars are usually measured in light-years. Interstellar distances can also be measured in parsecs.

    The center of our galaxy is about 26,000 light-years away

  • Dimensions

    DimensionsThe physical size of the object or the apparent angle it subtends on the sky.

    This image is 1.3 arcminutes across.

About the Data

  • Data Description

    Data DescriptionProposal: A description of the observations, their scientific justification, and the links to the data available in the science archive.
    Science Team: The astronomers who planned the observations and analyzed the data. “PI” refers to the Principal Investigator.

    These images were created with Hubble data from proposal: 17776 (S. Terry).

  • Instrument

    InstrumentThe science instrument used to produce the data.

    WFC3/UVIS

  • Exposure Dates

    Exposure DatesThe date(s) that the telescope made its observations and the total exposure time.

    29 March 2025

  • Filters

    FiltersThe camera filters that were used in the science observations.

    F606W, F814W