It was long believed that the Milky Way branched into four arms, but scientists now believe that it consists of only two spiral arms.
Written by Sean Thiessen | published
Scientists change the shape of galaxies. Or at least they understand it. According to previous reports Space.comA team of researchers used data from state-of-the-art telescopes and other instruments to map the shape of the Milky Way, and came up with the theory that it is a two-armed spiral, in contrast to the previous belief that it has four arms.
Recent studies have determined that each galaxy is likely to be an elliptical, irregular, or spiral shape. Spiral galaxies are the most common, and usually have two main arms that branch off from the center and separate into smaller arms.
It has long been thought that the Milky Way is an odd exception to this general shape. Scientists previously assumed that our galaxy was a spiral with four main arms extending from the star cluster at the center.
Although many believe that the Milky Way is special in this regard, why it has such a unique shape remains a mystery. New data suggests that the Milky Way may not be any different. Astronomers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences at Purple Mountain and the National Astronomical Observatories studied data from various sources to create new models of galaxies.
The team measured the distances between about 200 stars in the Milky Way to create a map of the galaxy. They combined this data with measurements from the European Space Agency’s Gaia telescope. They focused their telescope readings on more than 1,000 galaxy clusters and 24,000 OB stars.
These massive stars burn hot, bright, and fast, meaning they move very little during their lifetime and are relatively easy to track. The team measured the motion of the stars with respect to Earth to help detail their new galaxy model. The theory put forward by the team is that the Milky Way has a solid bar running through its center where there are two main branches of the arms.
At the edges of the galaxy are fragmented arms that are not connected to the dense star cluster at the center. These fragmented arms are thought to be the result of galactic collisions deep in the history of the Milky Way. When our galaxy collides with another, or perhaps several others, fragmentation that creates the shape scientists have now determined will occur.
The team acknowledges that the new galaxy model is incomplete. They will continue to add data from other sources and from the ongoing Gaia results, which are expected to be active for at least another two years.
The method that led the research team to model the spiral arms of the Milky Way could change the way scientists approach modeling the galaxy as a whole. Their process of determining the structure of galaxies is providing new clues about the shape of our galaxy and may continue to shed light on other people’s mysteries as well.
As scientists continue to solve space mysteries, our understanding of the universe and our galaxy is growing. The quest to map the galaxy is far from over, but humanity is one step closer to understanding how the shape of our galaxy fits into the puzzle of the universe.
2023-05-21 21:51:42
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