Astronomers have found the most convincing signs of the first stars in the universe

We're talking about stars that emerged hundreds of millions of years after the Big Bang.

Details

The observations were made using the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST).

Scientists studied one of the oldest known galaxies, GN-z11, and its surroundings.

The analysis showed:

• the emission of ionised helium was detected
• there are no traces of heavy elements (metals)
• a satellite object formed about 400 million years after the Big Bang has been detected

This combination of features is considered characteristic of so-called Population III stars - the first stars in the Universe.

Additionally:

• a second independent analysis confirmed the presence of a hydrogen signal
• modelling suggests that these stars could be 10 to 100 times more massive than the Sun

Why it matters

The first stars played a key role in the evolution of the Universe.

Scientists say

• they synthesised the first heavy elements
• influenced the formation of galaxies
• their existence has previously been confirmed only theoretically

The new observation makes it possible to study these processes directly.

Background

First-generation stars (Population III) formed from hydrogen and helium, the only elements that existed after the Big Bang.

They are thought to have been very massive and disappeared quickly, making them difficult to detect.

Source

The study is based on observations from the JWST telescope and spectral analyses of ancient galaxies. The results have been published as preprints on arXiv (2026).