Cosmic dawn: scientists hope to peer back in time to see birth of stars

Telescope may be able to observe event now calculated to have taken place 250-350m years after big bang

It is often said that looking through a telescope is like peering back in time, because of the millions of years it takes light from distant cosmic objects to reach Earth. Now scientists have calculated that they may be able to see far enough back to observe the birth of the very first stars - with the first images possibly available as early as next year. They have also pinpointed when this momentous event occurred.

Observing the moment when the universe was first bathed in light, the cosmic dawn, is a major quest in astronomy.