A new paper published this week in Nature highlights the discovery of a new galaxy from the early universe made using NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). Kartheik Iyer, a NASA Hubble Fellow at Columbia University, and Lamiya Mowla of Wellesley College, along with their colleagues in the Canadian NIRISS Unbiased Cluster Survey (CANUCS) collaboration, described the finding. They nicknamed the galaxy “Firefly Sparkle” because of its 10 prominent star clusters that resemble shimmering fireflies against the diffuse glow of less densely packed stars in the galaxy. Found in the Canadian Unbiased Cluster Survey (CANUCS), this galaxy is shaped like a diffuse arc and contains massive star clusters. These clusters, which hold 50% of the galaxy’s total mass, are tightly packed and far denser than star clusters in the Milky Way or nearby galaxies. The central star cluster in the Firefly Sparkle has unique properties, including a gas-rich environment, low metallicity, and high temperatures, suggesting it formed with an unusual mix of star sizes. This discovery provides a rare and detailed glimpse into how galaxies like our own began to form in the early Universe. Thanks to the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) and the natural magnifying effect of gravitational lensing, scientists can now detect and closely study these tiny, early galaxies.