We present measurements of the surface density of star formation , the star-forming clump luminosity function , and the clump size distribution function , for the lensed galaxy SGAS J111020.0 + 645950.8 at a redshift of z = 2.481 .
The physical size scales that we probe , radii r = 30 –50 pc , are considerably smaller scales than have yet been studied at these redshifts .
The star formation surface density we find within these small clumps is consistent with surface densities measured previously for other lensed galaxies at similar redshift .
Twenty-two percent of the rest-frame ultraviolet light in this lensed galaxy arises from small clumps , with r < 100 pc .
Within the range of overlap , the clump luminosity function measured for this lensed galaxy is remarkably similar to those of z \sim 0 galaxies .
In this galaxy , star-forming regions smaller than 100 pc—physical scales not usually resolved at these redshifts by current telescopes—are important locations of star formation in the distant universe .
If this galaxy is representative , this may contradict the theoretical picture in which the critical size scale for star formation in the distant universe is of order 1 kiloparsec .
Instead , our results suggest that current telescopes have not yet resolved the critical size scales of star-forming activity in galaxies over most of cosmic time .