Mature Before Their Time

In the youthful universe, some galaxies were already old

This winter has been one of the hottest on record for cosmologists. A flurry of new reports suggests that a surprising number of galaxies grew up in a hurry, appearing old and massive even when the universe was still very young. If this portrait of precocious galaxies is confirmed by larger studies, astronomers may have to revise the accepted view of galaxy formation.