Rubin Observatory Releases 3.2-Gigapixel Image of COSMOS Field Showing Over Half a Million Galaxies

The NSF-DOE Vera C. Rubin Observatory’s 3.2-gigapixel LSST camera has produced a new composite image of the COSMOS deep-field region. The picture, created by stacking hundreds of individual observations, displays more than 500,000 distant galaxies across the camera’s 189 CCD sensors. The image is part of the observatory’s early primary-mission data, which will eventually deliver roughly 700 ultra-high-resolution exposures each night for ten years.

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The COSMOS field (Cosmic Evolution Survey Deep Field) has been a focal point for extragalactic research since the Hubble Space Telescope surveyed it from 2003 to 2005. Its extensive prior coverage makes it an ideal benchmark for comparing ground-based and space-based observations. The Rubin Observatory’s 8.4-meter Simonyi Survey Telescope now adds its own high-resolution data, enabling long-term monitoring of how galaxies evolve.

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• Camera resolution: 3.2 gigapixels (? 3,200 megapixels).

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• Sensor array: 189 CCDs arranged on a single raft.

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• Physical size: roughly that of a small car; mass ? 6,600 lb (3,000 kg).

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• Imaging cadence: about 700 images per night, sustained for a decade.

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• COSMOS composite: > 500,000 galaxies identified in the stacked view.

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• The field contains over two million catalogued galaxies of various types and ages, providing a rich laboratory for galaxy-evolution studies.

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Bob Blum, Director of Rubin Observatory at NSF NOIRLab, emphasized that the COSMOS image represents only the start of the survey’s capabilities. Phil Marshall, Deputy Director of Rubin Observatory at SLAC, added that the field’s extensive prior observations and its role as a deep-field target during commissioning make it a valuable testing ground for scientists preparing to work with the full LSST data set.

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• “The COSMOS deep image is just the beginning for Rubin in this region. Repeated visits to the field over the next few years will demonstrate the power of our survey design for discovery by providing our science community with a huge number of transient and variable objects like supernovae and other explosive transients for follow-up and detailed study,” — Bob Blum, Director of Rubin Observatory at NSF NOIRLab

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