European survey reveals 900m galaxies – and possibly secrets of ‘dark universe’

Unprecedented view of cosmos provided by Euclid mission throws up many more cases of gravitational lensing

A mission to create the largest ever 3D map of the universe has revealed more than 900m galaxies in its first major data release together with about 15,000 potential cases of a phenomenon that could help unlock the secrets of the “dark universe”.

Launched in July 2023, the European Space Agency’s Euclid mission promised to create the largest cosmic map ever made, encompassing a third of the sky and more than 10bn years of cosmic history.