Scientists Say Galactic Wobble , Offers Glimpse at Ancient , Cosmic Collisions.
Scientists have found that the entire
Milky Way galaxy is rippling like
a pond disturbed by a large stone.
The Byte reports that the pond represents
our home galaxy, while the stone is our nearest
galactic neighbor, the Sagittarius dwarf galaxy. .
According to a new study published in the journal
of the 'Royal Astronomical Society,' the ancient
wobbling may shed light on our galaxy's distant past.
The wobble astronomers are now
observing is the result of a cosmic
collision that occurred eons ago.
We can see that these stars
wobble and move up and down
at different speeds, Paul McMillan, co-author and astronomer
at Sweden's Lund University, via The Byte.
A team of international researchers utilized data from
the European Space Agency's Gaia space observatory
to track and compare over 20 million Milky Way stars.
A team of international researchers utilized data from
the European Space Agency's Gaia space observatory
to track and compare over 20 million Milky Way stars.
The Byte reports that the process
known as "galactic seismology" was
used to generate models of the ripples. .
The team's results suggest that the Milky Way
and Sagittarius galaxies have collided multiple
times throughout the history of the universe.
The team's results suggest that the Milky Way
and Sagittarius galaxies have collided multiple
times throughout the history of the universe.
Researchers trace the likely
time of the last Sagittarius collision
to hundreds of millions of years ago.
An understanding of previous Sagittarius
collisions may allow scientists
to predict likely future collisions