New image of colliding galaxies predicts the fate of the Milky Way
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A new image that astronomers have seen through telescopes shows two entangled galaxies that will eventually merge into one in millions of years, and anticipates a possible similar fate for our own Milky Way galaxy.
The Gemini North telescope, perched atop Maunakea in Hawaii, spotted interacting spiral galaxies about 60 million light-years away in the constellation Virgo.
The galaxy pair NGC 4567 and NGC 4568, also known as the Butterfly galaxies, has just begun to collide as gravity pulls them together.
In 500 million years, the two space systems will complete their merger and form a single elliptical galaxy.
At this early stage, the two galactic centers are currently 20,000 light-years apart, and each galaxy has retained its pinwheel shape. As galaxies become more intricate, gravitational forces will lead to numerous intense star formation events. The original structures of galaxies will change and become distorted.
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