Redshift of quasar APM 08279+5255 (and expansion of the universe!) at the T60 Pic du Midi (apricot)

Redshift of quasar APM 08279+5255 (and expansion of the universe!) at the T60 Pic du Midi

Low rez spectrum of quasar APM 08279+5255 , obtained at the T60 telescope, Pic du Midi, under rough conditions (50 kph wind). With a simple grating (star analyser) in front of the CCD camera, only 30 min imaging.

The spectrum of APM 08279+5255 indicates it is an extremely distant source. The Lyman-alpha spectral line of hydrogen at rest (ie in the lab with no movement) is emitted/absorbed in the far ultraviolet (1216 Amstrong) but here, upon expansion of the universe during the 12 Giga years of light travel, the UV light was redshifted to a visible green light at about 5890 A. A similar redshift is observed for the nitrogen V and carbon IV spectral lines (1241 and 1549 redshifted to 6045 and 7580).

We can measure here Z = (Lobserved-Lrest)/Lrest=3.86+/-0.02 quite close to the pro measure at 3.87

z=3.87 corresponds to a 23.6 Gly (7.2 Gpc) co-moving distance, 12.05 Gly light travel time.

The forest of lines in front of the Lyman-alpha could correspond to the absorption of cosmological distant sources (including the gravitational lensing objects) in the line of sight of the fareway quasar, that absorb Lalpha photons at various z.

Altogether, what we can "see" here, is an ultraluminous monster quasar, and the expansion of the universe !

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Distribution of astrophotographers

This table shows the number of distinct astrophotographers who have been assigned and IOTD/TP award compared to the total number of images awarded.
	Distinct awarded users	Total awarded images
Image of the day
Top picks
Top pick nominations

Distribution of subject types

This table shows the distribution of awards per subject type, compared to the popularity of images of that subject type.
	Image of the day	Top pick	Top pick nominations	Total submitted
Deep sky
Solar system
Extremely wide field
Star trails
Northern lights
Noctilucent clouds
Landscape

Distribution of data sources

This table shows the distribution of awards per data source, compared to the popularity of images acquired from that data source.
	Image of the day	Top pick	Top pick nominations	Total submitted
Backyard
Traveller
Own remote observatory
Amateur hosting facility
Public amaeteur data
Professional, scientific grade data
Mix of multiple sources
Other
Unknown

The “AstroBin Image of the Day and Top Picks”, or IOTD/TP, is a long-running system to promote beautiful, interesting, peculiar, or otherwise amazing astrophotographs, with a focus on technical excellence. Learn more.

Submitted The date and time when you submitted this image for IOTD/TP consideration.	...
Views by Submitters (available since September 19th, 2023) Every image is assigned to 50% of available Submitters. In the event that at least 80% of them don't view the image before its time in the IOTD/TP process expires, it's assigned to the other 50% of Submitters and the process begins anew.
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Promotions by Reviewers When 3 distinct Reviewers promote the image, it moves on to the next stage of the process: evaluation for IOTD status.
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Status	Basic failed
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Astrometry.net job	516394
PixInsight job	n/a
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