James Webb Telescope Catches Glimpse of Possible First-Ever ‘Dark Stars’

July 13, 2023 • by Marc Airhart

Stars powered with dark matter still need proving but could reveal clues about the nature of one of the universe’s great mysteries.

Three blurry red dots stand out in the blackness of space

These three objects (JADES-GS-z13-0, JADES-GS-z12-0, and JADES-GS-z11-0) were originally identified as galaxies in December 2022 by the JWST Advanced Deep Extragalactic Survey (JADES). Now, a team including Katherine Freese at The University of Texas at Austin speculate they might actually be “dark stars,” theoretical objects much bigger and brighter than our sun, powered by particles of dark matter annihilating. Image credit: NASA/ESA.


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