What is making the Glow-worms Glow?

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What do you think astronomers call the green thing in this photo? If you guessed “blob”, then you’re right! Well, if we’re being technical, the full name for this type of object is a “Lyman-alpha blob”.

These blobs are incredibly rare and very far away in the Universe. They are also some of the biggest objects in the Universe – these gigantic clouds of gas can be up to a few times bigger than the size of our galaxy, the Milky Way! Like a swarm of glow-worm insects, these blobs shine brightly. But what is causing the blobs to glow is a mystery to astronomers.

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