天文学家利用詹姆斯韦伯太空望远镜和哈勃望远镜的研究表明，早期宇宙中神秘的"小红点"可能并非独立天体，而是因观测限制而显得孤立的完整星系。1研究团队通过分析绰号"柱状仙人掌"的螺旋星系WISEA J123635.56+621424.2发现，当以高红移观测该星系时，其周围结构会因过于暗弱而消失，仅留下明亮的红色核心可见。1
这一发现发表于2026年7月29日的《天体物理学杂志》。1柱状仙人掌的红移值为2，对应约33亿年前的宇宙状态。1韦伯望远镜的微快门阵列直接指向该星系核心，采集了关键的光谱数据。1
研究人员Pierluigi Rinaldi指出："我们的理论是，这些遥远源中的大多数受到这种宇宙学效应的影响，造成观测偏差。"1另一位研究者George Rieke表示，这一结果具有重要的宇宙学意义："早期宇宙中创造的一切都必须演化成我们周围的东西。这些结果终于向我们展示了如何找到它们的后代。"1
此外，柱状仙人掌产生了微弱的X射线辐射，已被美国宇航局钱德拉X射线天文台检测到。1
Astronomers using the James Webb Space Telescope and the Hubble Space Telescope have discovered that mysterious "little red dots" observed in the early universe may not be isolated objects but rather complete galaxies obscured by observational bias 1. Research published on July 29, 2026, in the Astrophysical Journal reveals that what appears as a bright red core in distant observations could actually be the luminous nucleus of a much larger galaxy whose fainter surrounding structure becomes invisible at high redshift 1.
The research team examined a spiral galaxy nicknamed the "Pillar Cactus," designated WISEA J123635.56+621424.2, located at a redshift of 2 corresponding to the universe approximately 3.3 billion years ago 1. Using Webb's microshutter array to collect spectroscopic data directly from the galaxy's core, the team created simulations that demonstrated how the surrounding galactic structure would vanish from view due to being too faint, leaving only the bright nucleus visible 1. According to the Pierluigi Rinaldi team, "Our theory is that most of these distant sources are affected by this cosmological effect, creating observational bias" 1. The Pillar Cactus galaxy also produces faint X-ray radiation, which was detected by NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory 1.
The findings have significant implications for understanding cosmic evolution. George Rieke noted that "everything created in the early universe must evolve into what surrounds us. These results finally show us how to find their descendants" 1.
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