Overview
- JWST’s NIRSpec‑IFU spectrograph spotted a faint signal from Hebe, a tiny companion near the galaxy GN‑z11 seen about 400 million years after the Big Bang.
- Roberto Maiolino’s team confirmed doubly ionized helium at Hebe and resolved the emission into two components.
- Elka Rusta’s group independently detected a hydrogen emission line at the same location.
- Both teams report no detectable metal lines, the metal‑free fingerprint expected for the universe’s first generation of stars.
- The authors’ models favor a top‑heavy mix of roughly 10–100‑solar‑mass stars, and they note the preprint results still require peer review and further observations.