A Long Time Ago in a Galaxy Far, Far Away: A Candidate z ~ 12 Galaxy in Early JWST CEERS Imaging
arXiv:2207.12474 · doi:10.3847/2041-8213/ac966e
Abstract
We report the discovery of a candidate galaxy with a photo-z of z~12 in the first epoch of the JWST Cosmic Evolution Early Release Science (CEERS) Survey. Following conservative selection criteria we identify a source with a robust z_phot = 11.8^+0.3_-0.2 (1-sigma uncertainty) with m_F200W=27.3, and >7-sigma detections in five filters. The source is not detected at lambda < 1.4um in deep imaging from both HST and JWST, and has faint ~3-sigma detections in JWST F150W and HST F160W, which signal a Ly-alpha break near the red edge of both filters, implying z~12. This object (Maisie's Galaxy) exhibits F115W-F200W > 1.9 mag (2-sigma lower limit) with a blue continuum slope, resulting in 99.6% of the photo-z PDF favoring z > 11. All data quality images show no artifacts at the candidate's position, and independent analyses consistently find a strong preference for z > 11. Its colors are inconsistent with Galactic stars, and it is resolved (r_h = 340 +/- 14 pc). Maisie's Galaxy has log M*/Msol ~ 8.5 and is highly star-forming (log sSFR ~ -8.2 yr^-1), with a blue rest-UV color (beta ~ -2.5) indicating little dust though not extremely low metallicity. While the presence of this source is in tension with most predictions, it agrees with empirical extrapolations assuming UV luminosity functions which smoothly decline with increasing redshift. Should followup spectroscopy validate this redshift, our Universe was already aglow with galaxies less than 400 Myr after the Big Bang.
17 pages, 6 figures, 3 tables, ApJL in press. Summary of changes from original submission: Improvements in astrometry generated a weak detection in F150W that reduces the photo-z to 11.8 but does not increase the likelihood of lower-z solutions. A full discussion of changes from the original version is available at: https://web.corral.tacc.utexas.edu/ceersdata/papers/Maisie_update.pdf
References in corpus (39)
- SciPy 1.0--Fundamental Algorithms for Scientific Computing in Python
- Cosmic Star Formation History
- EAZY: A Fast, Public Photometric Redshift Code
- UV Luminosity Functions at redshifts z~4 to z~10: 10000 Galaxies from HST Legacy Fields
- 3D-HST WFC3-selected Photometric Catalogs in the Five CANDELS/3D-HST Fields: Photometry, Photometric Redshifts and Stellar Masses
- Stellar Population Inference with Prospector
- The Near-Infrared Spectrograph (NIRSpec) on the James Webb Space Telescope I. Overview of the instrument and its capabilities
- The stellar mass assembly of galaxies from z=0 to z=4. Analysis of a sample selected in the rest-frame near-infrared with Spitzer
- New Determinations of the UV Luminosity Functions from z~9 to z~2 show a remarkable consistency with halo growth and a constant star formation efficiency
- Early results from GLASS-JWST. III: Galaxy candidates at z9-15
- The SCUBA-2 Cosmology Legacy Survey: 850um maps, catalogues and number counts
- The 0.4 < z < 1.3 star formation history of the Universe as viewed in the far-infrared
- Galaxy Formation and Reionization: Key Unknowns and Expected Breakthroughs by the James Webb Space Telescope
- A lack of evolution in the very bright-end of the galaxy luminosity function from z = 8-10
- On the Stellar Populations of Galaxies at z=9-11: The Growth of Metals and Stellar Mass at Early Times
- Spitzer/IRAC Photometry of M, L, and T Dwarfs
- A Simple Technique for Predicting High-Redshift Galaxy Evolution
- Are Dusty Galaxies Blue? Insights on UV Attenuation from Dust-Selected Galaxies
- Essential physics of early galaxy formation
- Non-parametric Star Formation History Reconstruction with Gaussian Processes I: Counting Major Episodes of Star Formation
- The Universe at z>10: Predictions for JWST from the UniverseMachine DR1
- First Light And Reionisation Epoch Simulations (FLARES) I: Environmental Dependence of High-Redshift Galaxy Evolution
- The ALMA REBELS Survey: the dust content of Lyman Break Galaxies
- A Census of the Bright z=8.5-11 Universe with the Hubble and Spitzer Space Telescopes in the CANDELS Fields
- The time-scales probed by star formation rate indicators for realistic, bursty star formation histories from the FIRE simulations
- A Search for H-Dropout Lyman Break Galaxies at z~12-16
- Stochastic modeling of star-formation histories I: the scatter of the star-forming main sequence
- JWST Noise Floor I: Random Error Sources in JWST NIRCam Time Series
- First Light And Reionisation Epoch Simulations (FLARES) II: The Photometric Properties of High-Redshift Galaxies
- Evidence for GN-z11 as a luminous galaxy at redshift 10.957
- Semi-analytic forecasts for JWST -- IV. Implications for cosmic reionization and LyC escape fraction
- Probing Cosmic Dawn : Ages and Star Formation Histories of Candidate 9 Galaxies
- Contamination by field late-M, L and T dwarfs in deep surveys
- Semi-analytic forecasts for JWST -- VI. Simulated lightcones and galaxy clustering predictions
- Probing the Bright End of the Rest-Frame Ultraviolet Luminosity Function at z = 8-10 with Hubble Pure-Parallel Imaging
- Mock Lightcones and Theory Friendly Catalogs for the CANDELS Survey
- High Equivalent Width of Hα+[N II] Emission in z~8 Lyman-break Galaxies from IRAC 5.8μm Observations: Evidence for Efficient Lyman-continuum Photon production in the Epoch of Re-ionization
- Simulating JWST/NIRCam Color Selection of High-Redshift Galaxies
- Slitless spectroscopy with the James Webb Space Telescope Near-Infrared Camera (JWST NIRCam)
Cited by in corpus (161)
- A Comprehensive Study on Galaxies at z~9-16 Found in the Early JWST Data: UV Luminosity Functions and Cosmic Star-Formation History at the Pre-Reionization Epoch
- CEERS Key Paper I: An Early Look into the First 500 Myr of Galaxy Formation with JWST
- The James Webb Space Telescope Mission
- A CEERS Discovery of an Accreting Supermassive Black Hole 570 Myr after the Big Bang: Identifying a Progenitor of Massive z > 6 Quasars
- Stress Testing CDM with High-redshift Galaxy Candidates
- Efficient Formation of Massive Galaxies at Cosmic Dawn by Feedback-Free Starbursts
- CEERS Epoch 1 NIRCam Imaging: Reduction Methods and Simulations Enabling Early JWST Science Results
- On the stunning abundance of super-early, massive galaxies revealed by JWST
- The brightest galaxies at Cosmic Dawn
- Confirmation and refutation of very luminous galaxies in the early universe
- A JWST/NIRCam Study of Key Contributors to Reionization: The Star-forming and Ionizing Properties of UV-faint Galaxies
- Spectroscopic Confirmation of CEERS NIRCam-selected Galaxies at
- JADES Imaging of GN-z11: Revealing the Morphology and Environment of a Luminous Galaxy 430 Myr After the Big Bang
- CEERS Spectroscopic Confirmation of NIRCam-Selected z > 8 Galaxy Candidates with JWST/NIRSpec: Initial Characterization of their Properties
- Evolution of the UV LF from z~15 to z~8 Using New JWST NIRCam Medium-Band Observations over the HUDF/XDF
- A surprising abundance of massive quiescent galaxies at 3 < z < 5 in the first data from JWST CEERS
- Life beyond 30: probing the -20<M_UV<-17 luminosity function at 8<z<13 with the NIRCam parallel field of the MIRI Deep Survey
- UV Luminosity Density Results at z>8 from the First JWST/NIRCam Fields: Limitations of Early Data Sets and the Need for Spectroscopy
- Dusty Starbursts Masquerading as Ultra-high Redshift Galaxies in JWST CEERS Observations
- CEERS Key Paper V: A triality on the nature of HST-dark galaxies
- Early Results from GLASS-JWST. XIX: A High Density of Bright Galaxies at in the Abell 2744 Region
- Are the ultra-high-redshift galaxies at z > 10 surprising in the context of standard galaxy formation models?
- The ultraviolet continuum slopes () of galaxies at from JWST and ground-based near-infrared imaging
- Balancing the efficiency and stochasticity of star formation with dust extinction in z > 10 galaxies observed by JWST
- A Candidate of a Least-Massive Black Hole at the First 1.1 Billion Years of the Universe
- Stochastic star formation in early galaxies: JWST implications
- First Look at z > 1 Bars in the Rest-Frame Near-Infrared with JWST Early CEERS Imaging
- A Magnified Compact Galaxy at Redshift 9.51 with Strong Nebular Emission Lines
- JWST early Universe observations and ΛCDM cosmology
- The MillenniumTNG Project: The galaxy population at
- Feedback-Free Starbursts at Cosmic Dawn: Observable Predictions for JWST
- JWST reveals a population of ultra-red, flattened disk galaxies at 2<z<6 previously missed by HST
- Spectral Templates Optimal for Selecting Galaxies at z > 8 with JWST
- Primordial Black Holes
- Templates for Fitting Photometry of Ultra-High-Redshift Galaxies
- JWST UNCOVER: Discovery of Galaxy Candidates Behind the Lensing Cluster Abell 2744
- Morphologies of Galaxies at Uncovered by JWST/NIRCam Imaging: Cosmic Size Evolution and an Identification of an Extremely Compact Bright Galaxy at
- CEERS Key Paper IV: Galaxies at are Bluer than They Appear -- Characterizing Galaxy Stellar Populations from Rest-Frame micron Imaging
- The abundance of galaxy candidates in the HUDF using deep JWST NIRCam medium-band imaging
- Primordial power spectrum in light of JWST observations of high redshift galaxies
- Did JWST observe imprints of axion miniclusters or primordial black holes?
- Inferring More from Less: Prospector as a Photometric Redshift Engine in the Era of JWST
- Constraining the physical properties of the first lensed galaxy candidates with JWST
- New AGN diagnostic diagrams based on the [OIII] auroral line
- Deep ALMA redshift search of a z~12 GLASS-JWST galaxy candidate
- Physical Characterization of Early Galaxies in the Webb's First Deep Field SMACS J0723.3-7323
- Breaking degeneracies in the first galaxies with clustering
- Quantifying the Effects of Known Unknowns on Inferred High-redshift Galaxy Properties: Burstiness, the IMF, and Nebular Physics
- Expectations of the size evolution of massive galaxies at from the TNG50 simulation: the CEERS/JWST view
- JWST reveals a possible galaxy merger in triply-lensed MACS0647JD
- Dusty winds clear JWST super-early galaxies
- High-redshift JWST Observations and Primordial Non-Gaussianity
- Seven wonders of Cosmic Dawn: JWST confirms a high abundance of galaxies and AGNs at z 9-11 in the GLASS field
- Peering into cosmic reionization: the Ly visibility evolution from galaxies at = 4.5-8.5 with JWST
- The Cosmic Timeline Implied by the JWST High-redshift Galaxies
- JWST FRESCO: a comprehensive census of H+[OIII] emitters at 6.8<z<9.0 in the GOODS fields
- A needle in a haystack? Catching Pop III stars in the Epoch of Reionization: I. Pop III star forming environments
- Supermassive Dark Star candidates seen by JWST?
- JWST/NIRSpec Measurements of the Relationships Between Nebular Emission-line Ratios and Stellar Mass at z~3-6
- Early Structure Formation from Cosmic String Loops in Light of Early JWST Observations
- ASTRODEEP-JWST: NIRCam-HST multiband photometry and redshifts for half a million sources in six extragalactic deep fields
- The ALMA REBELS Survey: The First Infrared Luminosity Function Measurement at $\mathbf{z \sim 7}
- JWST high-z galaxy constraints on warm and cold dark matter models
- Unveiling the hidden universe with JWST: The contribution of dust-obscured galaxies to the stellar mass function at
- Galaxy Size and Mass Build-up in the First 2 Gyrs of Cosmic History from Multi-Wavelength JWST NIRCam Imaging
- The GLASS-JWST Early Release Science Program. II. Stage I release of NIRCam imaging and catalogs in the Abell 2744 region
- Elevated UV luminosity density at Cosmic Dawn explained by non-evolving, weakly mass-dependent star formation efficiency
- JWST CEERS probes the role of stellar mass and morphology in obscuring galaxies
- Modeling the JWST high-redshift galaxies with a general formation scenario and the consistency with the CDM model
- Early JWST imaging reveals strong optical and NIR color gradients in galaxies at driven mostly by dust
- A strong He II 1640 emitter with extremely blue UV spectral slope at : presence of Pop III stars?
- JWST UNCOVER: The Overabundance of Ultraviolet-luminous Galaxies at
- Semi-analytic forecasts for Roman -- the beginning of a new era of deep-wide galaxy surveys
- An upper limit on [OIII] 88 m and 1.2 mm continuum emission from a JWST galaxy candidate with ALMA
- Zapped then Napped? A rapidly quenched remnant leaker candidate with a steep spectroscopic slope at z=8.5
- Density modulated star formation efficiency: implications for the observed abundance of ultra-violet luminous galaxies at z>10
- Narrow line AGN selection in CEERS: spectroscopic selection, physical properties, X-ray and radio analysis
- Delving deep: a population of extremely dusty dwarfs observed by JWST
- No Tension: JWST Galaxies at Consistent with Cosmological Simulations
- Broad emission lines in optical spectra of hot dust-obscured galaxies can contribute significantly to JWST/NIRCam photometry
- Massive Dark Matter Halos at High Redshift: Implications for Observations in the JWST Era
- A ne asuring library for large and complex spectroscopic data sets: Implementation of a virtual observatory for JWST spectra
- The THESAN project: connecting ionized bubble sizes to their local environments during the Epoch of Reionization
- Testing CCC+TL Cosmology with Observed BAO Features
- Stochastic Modelling of Star Formation Histories III. Constraints from Physically-Motivated Gaussian Processes
- Excess of high- galaxies as a test for bumpy power spectrum of density perturbations
- ALMA Observation of a Galaxy Candidate Discovered with JWST
- A photo-z cautionary tale: Redshift confirmation of COSBO-7 at z=2.625
- The mass-metallicity relation as a ruler for galaxy evolution: insights from the James Webb Space Telescope
- Redshifting galaxies from DESI to JWST CEERS: Correction of biases and uncertainties in quantifying morphology
- On the impact of spectral template uncertainties in synthetic stellar populations
- Compatibility of JWST results with exotic halos
- How do Primordial Black Holes change the Halo Mass Function and Structure?
- Webb's PEARLS: Bright 1.5--2.0 micron Dropouts in the Spitzer/IRAC Dark Field
- Probing the Timescale of the 1.4 GHz Radio emissions as a Star formation tracer
- The radio properties of the JWST-discovered AGN
- Hitting the slopes: A spectroscopic view of UV continuum slopes of galaxies reveals a reddening at z > 9.5
- A hide-and-seek game: Looking for Population III stars during the Epoch of Reionization through the HeII1640 line
- Constraints on the intergalactic medium from JWST spectroscopy of Lyman-alpha damping wings in galaxies
- The robustness in identifying and quantifying high-redshift bars using JWST observations
- Early results from GLASS-JWST XV: properties of the faintest red sources in the NIRCAM deep fields
- Modelling the star-formation activity and ionizing properties of high-redshift galaxies
- The UV luminosity function at 0.6 < z < 1 from UVCANDELS
- Enhanced Early Galaxy Formation in JWST from Axion Dark Matter?
- Tracing the galaxy-halo connection with galaxy clustering in COSMOS-Web from z = 0.1 to z ~ 12
- The ALMA-ALPINE [CII] survey: sub-kpc morphology of 3 main-sequence galaxy systems at z~4.5 revealed by ALMA
- Accelerated quenching and chemical enhancement of massive galaxies in a gas-rich halo
- Pushing JWST to the extremes: search and scrutiny of bright galaxy candidates at z15-30
- JWST reveals a high fraction of disk breaks at
- ΛCDM is still not broken: empirical constraints on the star formation efficiency at z ~ 12-30
- A z=1.85 galaxy group in CEERS: evolved, dustless, massive intra-halo light and a brightest group galaxy in the making
- Distinguishing the impact and signature of black holes from different origins in early cosmic history
- The ALPINE-ALMA [CII] Survey: Dust emission effective radius up to 3 kpc in the Early Universe
- Strong spectral features from asymptotic giant branch stars in distant quiescent galaxies
- Influence of early dark matter halos on the primordial black holes merger rate
- Mapping reionization bubbles in the JWST era I: empirical edge detection with Lyman alpha emission from galaxies
- Point-like sources among z>11 galaxy candidates: contaminants due to supernovae at high redshifts?
- The first GLIMPSE of the faint galaxy population at Cosmic Dawn with JWST: The evolution of the ultraviolet luminosity function across z~9-15
- Explanation of high redshift luminous galaxies from JWST by early dark energy model
- Can Early Dark Energy be Probed by the High-Redshift Galaxy Abundance?
- Little impact of mergers and galaxy morphology on the production and escape of ionizing photons in the early Universe
- Discord in Concordance Cosmology and Anomalously Massive Early Galaxies
- Halfway to the Peak: The JWST MIRI 5.6 micron number counts and source population
- GalaPy, the highly optimised C++/Python spectral modelling tool for galaxies -- I. Library presentation and photometric fitting
- Detectability of Supermassive Dark Stars with the Roman Space Telescope
- BASS. XLIX. Characterization of highly luminous and obscured AGNs: local X-ray and [NeV]3426 emission in comparison with the high-redshift Universe
- NOEMA reveals the true nature of luminous red JWST z>10 galaxy candidates
- The THESAN-ZOOM project: Star-formation efficiencies in high-redshift galaxies
- Radio properties of Green Pea galaxies
- Probing the Nature of the First Galaxies with JWST and ALMA
- Impact of star formation models on the growth of simulated galaxies at high redshifts
- The THESAN-ZOOM project: Star formation efficiency from giant molecular clouds to galactic scale in high-redshift starbursts
- Color profiles of disk galaxies at - observed with JWST: Implications for outer-disk formation histories
- CoReCon: an open, community-powered collection of Reionization constraints
- Unveiling the Cosmic Gems Arc at with JWST NIRCam
- Rapid and Late Cosmic Reionization Driven by Massive Galaxies: a Joint Analysis of Constraints from 21-cm, Lyman Line & CMB Data Sets
- Star formation across cosmic time
- Can an Anti-de Sitter Vacuum in the Dark Energy Sector Explain JWST High-Redshift Galaxy and Reionization Observations?
- Infrared Ejecta and Cold Dust in the Young Supernova Remnant N132D
- Signatures of Very Early Dark Energy in the Matter Power Spectrum
- Deep Large Binocular Camera r-band Observations of the GOODS-N Field
- A Morphology Catalog of Galaxies in CEERS: Evolution in the Size and Color Gradients of Galaxies Since Cosmic Dawn
- Simulating the collapse of rotating primordial gas clouds to study the survival possibility of Pop III protostars
- Properties of Central Regions of the Dark Matter Halos in the Model with a Bump in the Power Spectrum of Density Perturbations
- The Three Hundred: relation
- Primordial black holes as dark matter candidates: Multi-frequency constraints from cosmic radiation backgrounds
- Identification of Large Equivalent Width Dusty Galaxies at 4 z 6 from Sub-mm Colours
- Cloudy-Maraston: Integrating nebular continuum and line emission with the Maraston stellar population synthesis models
- Probing the rapid formation of black holes and their galaxy hosts in QSOs
- Differencing and Coadding JWST Images with Matched Point Spread Function
- Dark Secrets of Baryons: Illuminating Dark Matter-Baryon Interactions with JWST
- Evolution of Size, Mass, and Density of Galaxies Since Cosmic Dawn
- Searching for Intragroup Light in Deep U-band Imaging of the COSMOS Field
- A physically-motivated template set for high-z galaxy SED fitting
- The energy conditions and model selection in the local Universe
- The JWST early galaxy crisis resolved by a reionization degeneracy
- Probing power spectrum enhancement at small scales with the SKA
- Self-gravitating isothermal sphere in an expanding background
- The Cosmic Rush Hour: Rapid Formation of Bright, Massive, Disky, Star-Forming Galaxies as Signatures of Early-Universe Physics
- First Light: Switching on Stars at the Dawn of Time
- Euclid: Discovery of bright Lyman-break galaxies in UltraVISTA and Euclid COSMOS