The European Space Agency’s (ESA) Euclid mission has released its first major batch of survey data, offering a stunning glimpse into the vast cosmos.
The newly unveiled images, covering a 63-square-degree patch of the sky – more than 300 times the size of the full Moon – reveal millions of galaxies in exquisite detail.
And this is just the beginning. Euclid's mission to map the Universe and unravel the mysteries of dark matter and dark energy – the elusive forces that make up 95 per cent of the cosmos – is only getting started.
Launched in July 2023 and starting its routine science operations in February 2024, Euclid is designed to survey a third of the sky, ultimately imaging 1.5 billion galaxies. In just one week of deep-field observations, the mission has already identified 26 million galaxies, some lying an astonishing 10.5 billion light-years away.
Prof Carole Mundell, ESA’s Director of Science, described the release as “a treasure trove of information for scientists to dive into.” In a public statement, she pointed to Euclid’s role as “the ultimate discovery machine,” allowing astronomers to probe the grand structure of the Universe with unparalleled precision.
The mission’s first observations showcase Euclid’s ability to map the large-scale structure of the Universe.
Using its high-resolution visible instrument (VIS) and near-infrared spectrometer (NISP), the telescope captures galaxies across vast cosmic distances, helping scientists trace the intricate filaments of matter – both ordinary and dark – that form the cosmic web.
“The full potential of Euclid to learn more about dark matter and dark energy from the large-scale structure of the cosmic web will be reached only when it has completed its entire survey,” said Dr Clotilde Laigle, a scientist with the Euclid Consortium.
“Yet the volume of this first data release already offers us a unique first glance at the large-scale organisation of galaxies, which we can use to learn more about galaxy formation over time.”
With Euclid’s immense data stream – 100 GB per day is sent back to Earth – scientists face the challenge of cataloguing and analysing an unprecedented number of galaxies.
To tackle this, AI algorithms, working in tandem with thousands of citizen scientists, have classified more than 380,000 galaxies in the initial dataset.
The AI model, known as ‘Zoobot,’ was trained through a month-long effort on the Galaxy Zoo platform, where nearly 10,000 volunteers helped refine its galaxy classification skills.
Dr Mike Walmsley, an expert in astronomical deep learning at the University of Toronto, explained the significance of AI in processing Euclid’s vast dataset: “We’re at a pivotal moment in terms of how we tackle large-scale surveys in astronomy. AI is a fundamental and necessary part of our process in order to fully exploit Euclid’s vast dataset.”
As scientists begin poring over this first batch of data, many are already looking ahead at what’s to come.
“Euclid will completely revolutionise our view of the Universe,” Prof Christopher Conselice of the University of Manchester said in a statement.
He described the results so far as the “tip of the iceberg,” saying that “soon Euclid will discover yet unknown details of the dark energy and give a full picture of how galaxy formation occurred across all cosmic time.”
The mission is indeed still in its early days, with the data released so far representing just 0.4 per cent of what Euclid will ultimately survey.
With its first data release setting the stage for even greater discoveries, Euclid is on track to deliver a breathtaking new perspective on the Universe. In October 2026, ESA will release Euclid’s first major cosmology dataset, incorporating a much larger survey area and multiple deep-field passes.
If this first glimpse is any indication, the coming years promise an avalanche of data and discoveries that could transform our understanding of the Universe.
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