In just over three years since its highly anticipated launch, NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope has already begun to rewrite what we know about the cosmos. The telescope, often hailed as humanity’s most powerful eye in space, has peered deeper into the universe than ever before, offering humanity an unprecedented glimpse into its ancient past. But alongside the breathtaking images of swirling galaxies and cosmic nurseries, Webb is delivering data that challenge the very foundations of modern cosmology. A new study led by Lior Shamir, an associate professor of computer science at Kansas State University, is shedding light on one of the simplest yet most perplexing patterns ever observed in the deep universe.
Shamir’s work, recently published in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, centers on an analysis of 263 galaxies captured by Webb’s Advanced Deep Extragalactic Survey, or JADES. What he found was as striking as it was unexpected: about two-thirds of these distant galaxies appear to rotate in the same direction—clockwise. Only about a third spin the opposite way. This discovery is remarkable because, in a universe shaped by random processes and symmetry, we would expect a roughly even distribution. But that is not what Webb’s powerful infrared eyes are showing us.
What makes this finding even more compelling is its simplicity. According to Shamir, identifying the direction in which these galaxies rotate doesn’t require any advanced expertise in astronomy or data analysis. The difference is so pronounced that even a casual observer looking at the images could detect it. “The analysis of the galaxies was done by quantitative analysis of their shapes,” Shamir explained. “But the difference is so obvious that any person looking at the image can see it. There is no need for special skills or knowledge to see that the numbers are different.”
This asymmetry in galactic rotation raises profound questions about the structure and origins of the universe. In an ideal cosmological model, one built upon the principles of the Big Bang and cosmic inflation, galaxies should be randomly oriented in terms of their spin direction. There should be no large-scale preference for clockwise or counterclockwise rotation. Yet here we are, observing a strong preference in one direction. Shamir offers two leading explanations for what could be causing this surprising trend—both of which carry significant implications for our understanding of the cosmos.
One possibility is that the entire universe was born rotating. This idea, while sounding almost mythological in its simplicity, is grounded in some fringe but intriguing cosmological theories. In particular, the concept aligns with black hole cosmology, which proposes that our entire universe exists inside a giant black hole. If true, this model allows for the universe itself to have an intrinsic angular momentum, just as black holes are known to spin. “That explanation agrees with theories such as black hole cosmology, which postulates that the entire universe is the interior of a black hole,” Shamir said. “But if the universe was indeed born rotating, it means that the existing theories about the cosmos are incomplete.”
Such a discovery would profoundly shift the way we understand the laws that govern everything from galaxy formation to the very fabric of spacetime. The current Standard Model of cosmology does not account for a universe that has an overall spin. While local rotations—like the spinning of galaxies or the rotation of stars—are a normal consequence of gravitational collapse and conservation of angular momentum, a net rotation on the universal scale would imply a privileged axis or direction in space. That would violate the long-held cosmological principle that the universe is isotropic and homogeneous, meaning it looks the same in every direction and from every point.
The second explanation Shamir offers is somewhat less radical but still profound. It relates to the effects of our own galaxy’s rotation and motion through space. Earth orbits the center of the Milky Way galaxy, and the Milky Way itself rotates. Shamir points out that, because of the Doppler effect, light from galaxies rotating opposite to Earth’s motion might appear brighter to observers. This brightness bias could skew observations, leading to an overrepresentation of galaxies that rotate in a particular direction. Traditionally, astronomers have assumed the rotational velocity of the Milky Way is too small to significantly affect the brightness of distant galaxies observed in deep space surveys. But Shamir’s study suggests this assumption may need to be revisited.
“If that is indeed the case,” he said, “we will need to re-calibrate our distance measurements for the deep universe.” Distance measurements in cosmology are fundamentally important. Astronomers rely on redshift—the stretching of light waves as the universe expands—to determine how far away galaxies are. If we’ve been misinterpreting these redshifts due to unaccounted-for motion in our own galaxy, it could have major consequences for our understanding of cosmic distances and, by extension, the age and expansion rate of the universe.
Recalibrating distance measurements might also help resolve other long-standing cosmological puzzles. For example, there has been a persistent discrepancy between two methods of measuring the universe’s expansion rate, known as the Hubble constant. One method, which looks at the cosmic microwave background radiation, suggests a slower rate of expansion, while direct observations of distant galaxies suggest the universe is expanding much faster. If our measurements of galactic distances are skewed, it could explain this so-called “Hubble tension.”
Additionally, Shamir suggests that this recalibration could help solve another cosmological mystery: the existence of massive galaxies that appear to be older than the universe itself—at least according to current distance and age estimates. If our calculations are off due to unnoticed effects like the Milky Way’s rotation, it could lead us to overestimate the ages of these ancient galaxies. Correcting this would bring their ages more in line with what we expect from the Big Bang model.
But even beyond these potential solutions, Shamir’s findings highlight just how much we still don’t know about the universe. The James Webb Space Telescope was designed to answer some of cosmology’s deepest questions, but it’s also revealing entirely new mysteries that scientists didn’t anticipate. Shamir’s study is an example of how the JWST, with its unprecedented sensitivity and resolution, can uncover patterns that were previously hidden from view.
So what happens next? Astronomers and physicists will need to explore Shamir’s findings further. Independent teams will likely examine additional datasets from JWST and other telescopes to see if the observed rotational asymmetry persists in different regions of the sky. If it does, it would provide strong evidence that this is a genuine cosmic phenomenon, rather than an artifact of observational bias or data analysis. Additionally, theoretical physicists will need to grapple with the implications of a rotating universe, revisiting models that have long been considered speculative or even outlandish.
For now, Shamir’s discovery adds to a growing sense that we are on the brink of a new era in cosmology—one where old assumptions are questioned and new ideas take center stage. The James Webb Space Telescope has already changed the way we see the universe, and it’s becoming clear that it may also change the way we understand it.
The idea that the universe could have an inherent spin may sound simple, but its implications are profound. It challenges our notions of symmetry and randomness at cosmic scales. It opens the door to new theories about the origins and fate of everything we observe. Whether it’s the echo of an ancient cosmic rotation or a subtle artifact of our own galactic motion, this discovery reminds us that the universe still has secrets to reveal—and that we have only just begun to unravel them.
More information: Lior Shamir, The distribution of galaxy rotation in JWST Advanced Deep Extragalactic Survey, Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society (2025). DOI: 10.1093/mnras/staf292