The most powerful tool in an astronomer’s arsenal is a lens – but not the kind you might think

By Tania Barone, Research Associate in Galaxy Evolution, Swinburne University of Technology

Astronomers are living in a golden age of bigger and better telescopes. But even our most advanced technology pales in comparison to the power of nature’s own “cosmic magnifying glasses” – strong gravitational lenses.

In less than 50 years we have gone from the first-ever discovery of a strong gravitational lens to now finding thousands. As new telescopes come online, we’re expecting to discover thousands more.

With these lenses, we can look…

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