Macroscopic Lensing

Macroscopic lensing refers to the bending of light caused by massive objects like galaxies or clusters of galaxies. These objects have enough gravity to curve the space around them, much like a lens bends incoming light rays. When light from a distant source, such as a quasar or galaxy, passes near such a massive object on its way to Earth, it gets bent and can produce multiple images, arcs, or rings of the source. This phenomenon helps astronomers study the distribution of dark matter, the structure of the universe, and the properties of distant celestial objects.