12-billion-year-old star streams Shakti and Shiva, remnants of merged galaxies, discovered by Gaia telescope.
Astronomers using ESA's Gaia space telescope have discovered two ancient streams of stars, Shakti and Shiva, which are likely remnants of two galaxies that merged with an early version of the Milky Way galaxy over 12 billion years ago. The two streams, each containing around 10 million suns, predate the galaxy's spiral arms and central disk and could offer insights into the early days of the Milky Way and the evolution of similarly massive galaxies.
March 21, 2024
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