APM 08279 5255

APM 08279 5255 is a quasar in the constellation Lynx and an unusual example of a gravitational lens. Upon his discovery he was the brightest known object in astrophysics due to its large redshift and brightness.

Observations from the Hubble Space Telescope showed three distinct objects that APM 08279 5255 accounted for. Detailed studies showed that these three objects are images of the same quasar. APM 08279 5255 is unusual in that images of gravitational lenses usually never produce odd numbers, but the multiplication of the original image produce even numbers (ie double or quadruple image of the magnified through the lens object ).

Another special feature of the quasar is that he is surrounded by a large amount of water vapor, which circles the object and will eventually plunge into this. The observed amount of water, the APM 08279 5255 orbiting about 140 trillion times as large as the amount of all the water, which is located on Earth.