![]() If woken, the black hole is expected to blast out high-energy radiation. This would wake the slumbering titan, which holds a mass equivalent to 4.5 million times that of the sun and currently feeds on a level of material so minuscule it's comparable to a human eating one grain of rice every million years. Not only could this trigger a bout of rapid star formation in our galaxy, but also supply the gas and dust necessary to feed the Milky Way's sleeping supermassive black hole, Sagittarius A* (Sgr A*). Both are gravitationally bound to the Milky Way, and many astronomers believe the realms are currently in the process of being digested by our home galaxy.Īstronomers also predict that the LMC, currently 163,000 light years away from the solar system, is set to fully merge with the Milky Way in around 2.4 billion years. The Milky Way is currently surrounded by at least 59 satellite dwarf galaxies, the largest and most prominent of which are the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) and Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC). James Webb Space Telescope spots violent collision between neutron stars The Hubble Space Telescope spots three galaxies about to collide Merging galaxies shine with the light of a trillion suns in gorgeous James Webb Space Telescope photo Oddly enough, those streams seemed to have originated outside our galaxy. ![]() 2022 posited that it had cannibalized at least six smaller companion dwarf galaxies during its lifetime.Įvidence for this theory is rooted in the star streams scientists observed populating the Milky Way's halo. While the Milky Way's total body count is somewhat shrouded in mystery, research published in Feb. Throughout the 13.8-billion-year history of the universe, cosmic feeding events such as the one underway between Haley's Coronet and NGC 1531 have been key in supporting the growth of galaxies. One element of Haley's Coronet appears unconcerned with the ongoing battle with NGC 1531 - the spiral arm closer to Earth looks relaxed as it hangs down from the site of the collision. It's held in place, scientists say, by tidal forces arising from the gravitational influence of both bodies. Also present, but less obvious in this image, are bouts of star formation within both Haley's Coronet and NGC 1531 triggered by interactions between the realms. ![]() The image also reveals a bridge made of gas and dust stretching between the two galaxies. This distorted radial feature demonstrates that while NGC 1531 is being hopelessly overtaken, it still has a noticeable effect on its larger companion. The DECam picture shows an edge-on view of the spiral arms in Haley's Coronet, revealing that the further arm is being wrenched upwards as it pulls on the dwarf galaxy. The new image of Haley's Coronet and NGC 1531 could offer hints as to how the early stages of those merger events play out. Scientists currently think large galaxies, such as the Milky Way, grow over the course of billions of years by continuously merging with smaller, nearby dwarf galaxies.
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