How did early galaxies appear according to the Hubble Deep Field (HDF) observations?
Smaller, clumpier, and more irregular
The Hubble Deep Field (HDF), first captured in 1995, and subsequent deep exposures like the HUDF, provided unprecedented views into the universe's infancy by looking billions of years into the past. The galaxies observed in these images, which formed shortly after the Big Bang, exhibited characteristics vastly different from the mature galaxies seen nearby today. They were documented as being smaller in size, lacking the defined symmetry of spirals or ellipticals, appearing more clumpy, and having irregular shapes. This observation provided critical evidence supporting the theory that grand, structured galaxies observed in the present day grew over eons through the merging and accumulation of these smaller, primitive building blocks.

#Videos
Hubble Telescope's Greatest Discoveries [4K] - YouTube