Astronomers using NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope have identified 300 unusually bright objects in the early universe, possibly early galaxies that shine far brighter than current models predict.

Detected through the “dropout” technique, these objects appear extremely distant, showing the cosmos as it was over 13 billion years ago.

If confirmed, they could challenge existing theories of how quickly the first stars and galaxies formed, Space.com has reported.

Researchers plan follow-up spectroscopic observations to verify the findings, which were published in The Astrophysical Journal.