Latest news with #M33
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First Post
2 days ago
- General
- First Post
Our galaxy can breathe easy: Milky Way may not collide with Andromeda, says new research
The study still indicates a small chance, around 2 per cent, of a direct collision between Milky Way and Andromeda in 4 to 5 billion years. However, humanity will have long ceased to exist by then read more Recent research based on data from the Hubble and ESA's Gaia space telescopes has cast doubts over the long-standing prediction about the collision and merger of the Milky Way with the Andromeda galaxy. The findings suggest that this event is far less certain than previously believed by astronomers and experts. Only 50% chance of collision in next 10 bn years By carefully considering uncertainties in current measurements and including the gravitational effects of nearby galaxies (the Large Magellanic Cloud, which is a massive satellite galaxy currently merging with the Milky Way, and M33, or the Triangulum Galaxy, which orbits Andromeda), researchers discovered that in approximately half of their Monte-Carlo simulations, the Milky Way and Andromeda do not merge within the next 10 billion years. This means there is only about a 50 per cent chance of the two galaxies merging in the next 10 billion years. The galaxy images provided illustrate three potential scenarios for encounters between the Milky Way and Andromeda. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD In the top left panel, a wide-field Digitised Sky Survey (DSS) image of galaxies M81 and M82 exemplifies the Milky Way and Andromeda passing each other at large distances. The top right panel shows NGC 6786, a pair of interacting galaxies exhibiting signs of tidal disturbances after a close encounter. The bottom panel displays NGC 520, depicting two galaxies actively merging in a cosmic collision. Animations predicting the collision of these two galaxies in about 4 billion years, followed by their merger 2 billion years later, do not account for uncertainties in various measured parameters. Only 2% chance of direct collision in 5 bn years The study still indicates a small chance, around 2 per cent, of a direct collision between the galaxies in 4 to 5 billion years. However, humanity will have long ceased to exist by then, as the Sun will have rendered Earth uninhabitable in roughly 1 billion years. This differs from previous analysis, which claimed the two galaxies would collide and create cosmic fireworks because they are moving towards each other at a pace of 2,24,000 miles per hour.
Economic Times
2 days ago
- General
- Economic Times
'Not so fast': NASA shares a big update on 'end of the world' doomsday prediction
NASA, in collaboration with the European Space Agency, has updated its long-standing prediction about a future collision between the Milky Way and the Andromeda galaxy. A new study using data from the Hubble and Gaia space telescopes suggests that the once-assumed head-on crash is no longer a certainty. Researchers ran 100,000 simulations and found there's only a 50% chance the two galaxies will collide within the next 10 billion years. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Revisiting the Future of the Milky Way How Likely Is a Collision? Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Other Galaxies Add to the Complexity Still a Small Chance of a Sooner Collision A Universe of Unknowns For over a century, scientists believed that a cosmic catastrophe awaited our galaxy. In 1912, astronomers noticed that the Andromeda galaxy appeared to be on a collision course with the Milky Way. In 2012, NASA's Hubble Space Telescope confirmed that Andromeda's sideways movement was minimal, reinforcing the idea of a direct hit in about 4 to 5 billion years. But now, a new study says that might not be the case after all.A new paper published in Nature Astronomy presents a very different outlook. Using data from both NASA's Hubble Space Telescope and the European Space Agency's Gaia observatory, astronomers have re-examined the previous prediction. The updated study, led by University of Helsinki astronomer Till Sawala, suggests the future isn't as certain as once believed.'We have the most comprehensive study of this problem today that actually folds in all the observational uncertainties,' said research team, which includes scientists from Durham University, the University of Toulouse, and the University of Western Australia, ran computer simulations to understand the long-term behavior of the Milky Way and Andromeda. Their conclusion? There's about a 50% chance of a collision occurring within the next 10 billion reach this finding, astronomers considered 22 variables and ran 100,000 simulations stretching far into the future. This method, known as Monte Carlo simulation, helps model outcomes with complex variables.'Because there are so many variables that each have their errors, that accumulates to rather large uncertainty about the outcome, leading to the conclusion that the chance of a direct collision is only 50% within the next 10 billion years,' said added that while the Milky Way and Andromeda might appear destined to merge, 'they could still go past each other.'The study also took into account the influence of other nearby galaxies — Andromeda's massive satellite M33, and the Milky Way's Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC). Both galaxies add gravitational forces that impact the trajectory and motion of the Milky Way and Andromeda.'The extra mass of Andromeda's satellite galaxy M33 pulls the Milky Way a little bit more towards it. However, we also show that the LMC pulls the Milky Way off the orbital plane and away from Andromeda. It doesn't mean that the LMC will save us from that merger, but it makes it a bit less likely,' Sawala with the revised outlook, a head-on collision remains possible, albeit unlikely. The new data still allows for a 2% chance that the two galaxies might collide in just 4 to 5 billion years — a scenario similar to earlier Earth's habitability will be long gone by then, as scientists estimate the Sun will make the planet too hot for life within 1 billion years, and will itself burn out in about 5 billion study reflects how astronomical predictions continue to evolve as better data becomes available. 'Even using the latest and most precise observational data available, the future of the Local Group of several dozen galaxies is uncertain,' said Sawala. 'Intriguingly, we find an almost equal probability for the widely publicized merger scenario, or, conversely, an alternative one where the Milky Way and Andromeda survive unscathed.'NASA and ESA's Hubble Space Telescope, which has been operational for over 30 years, remains a cornerstone of space exploration . The ongoing collaboration between international teams continues to reshape what we know — and what we think we know — about the future of our galaxy.
Time of India
2 days ago
- General
- Time of India
'Not so fast': NASA shares a big update on 'end of the world' doomsday prediction
NASA, in collaboration with the European Space Agency, has updated its long-standing prediction about a future collision between the Milky Way and the Andromeda galaxy. A new study using data from the Hubble and Gaia space telescopes suggests that the once-assumed head-on crash is no longer a certainty. Researchers ran 100,000 simulations and found there's only a 50% chance the two galaxies will collide within the next 10 billion years. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Revisiting the Future of the Milky Way How Likely Is a Collision? Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Other Galaxies Add to the Complexity Still a Small Chance of a Sooner Collision A Universe of Unknowns For over a century, scientists believed that a cosmic catastrophe awaited our galaxy. In 1912, astronomers noticed that the Andromeda galaxy appeared to be on a collision course with the Milky Way. In 2012, NASA's Hubble Space Telescope confirmed that Andromeda's sideways movement was minimal, reinforcing the idea of a direct hit in about 4 to 5 billion years. But now, a new study says that might not be the case after all.A new paper published in Nature Astronomy presents a very different outlook. Using data from both NASA's Hubble Space Telescope and the European Space Agency's Gaia observatory, astronomers have re-examined the previous prediction. The updated study, led by University of Helsinki astronomer Till Sawala, suggests the future isn't as certain as once believed.'We have the most comprehensive study of this problem today that actually folds in all the observational uncertainties,' said research team, which includes scientists from Durham University, the University of Toulouse, and the University of Western Australia, ran computer simulations to understand the long-term behavior of the Milky Way and Andromeda. Their conclusion? There's about a 50% chance of a collision occurring within the next 10 billion reach this finding, astronomers considered 22 variables and ran 100,000 simulations stretching far into the future. This method, known as Monte Carlo simulation, helps model outcomes with complex variables.'Because there are so many variables that each have their errors, that accumulates to rather large uncertainty about the outcome, leading to the conclusion that the chance of a direct collision is only 50% within the next 10 billion years,' said added that while the Milky Way and Andromeda might appear destined to merge, 'they could still go past each other.'The study also took into account the influence of other nearby galaxies — Andromeda's massive satellite M33, and the Milky Way's Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC). Both galaxies add gravitational forces that impact the trajectory and motion of the Milky Way and Andromeda.'The extra mass of Andromeda's satellite galaxy M33 pulls the Milky Way a little bit more towards it. However, we also show that the LMC pulls the Milky Way off the orbital plane and away from Andromeda. It doesn't mean that the LMC will save us from that merger, but it makes it a bit less likely,' Sawala with the revised outlook, a head-on collision remains possible, albeit unlikely. The new data still allows for a 2% chance that the two galaxies might collide in just 4 to 5 billion years — a scenario similar to earlier Earth's habitability will be long gone by then, as scientists estimate the Sun will make the planet too hot for life within 1 billion years, and will itself burn out in about 5 billion study reflects how astronomical predictions continue to evolve as better data becomes available. 'Even using the latest and most precise observational data available, the future of the Local Group of several dozen galaxies is uncertain,' said Sawala. 'Intriguingly, we find an almost equal probability for the widely publicized merger scenario, or, conversely, an alternative one where the Milky Way and Andromeda survive unscathed.'NASA and ESA's Hubble Space Telescope, which has been operational for over 30 years, remains a cornerstone of space exploration . The ongoing collaboration between international teams continues to reshape what we know — and what we think we know — about the future of our galaxy.
NDTV
3 days ago
- Science
- NDTV
Milky Way To Collide With Its Largest Neighbour Andromeda? What New Study Said
Quick Read Summary is AI generated, newsroom reviewed. A new study suggests the Milky Way may not collide with Andromeda as previously thought. The chance of a head-on collision in 4.5 billion years is only 2%, with a 50% chance within 10 billion years. Astronomers have long believed that the Milky Way galaxy may collide head-on with its largest neighbour, the Andromeda galaxy, in about 4.5 billion years. But a new study shows the cosmic clash, named Milkomeda, might not happen the way it was thought. The new data, obtained using the Hubble and Gaia space telescopes, indicates the likelihood of the Milky Way and Andromeda colliding within the next 4 to 5 billion years is only 2 per cent, CNN reported. It also says there is a roughly 50 per cent chance they will collide at some point in the next 10 billion years. Earlier, scientists believed the collision may destroy both galaxies, merging them into an elongated one. The reason was that the two galaxies were moving toward each other at 2,24,000 miles per hour. They expected it to be similar to other galaxy collisions where a merger would create cosmic fireworks. Carlos Frenk, a Professor at Durham University in England and study co-author, said, "Until now we thought this was the fate that awaited our Milky Way galaxy. We now know that there is a very good chance that we may avoid that scary destiny". Dr Till Sawala, astronomer at the University of Helsinki in Finland and the lead author of the study, said the merger may create a strong starburst where many new stars would form. After that, many young stars will explode, and the supermassive black hole at the centre will become very active, sending out a lot of radiation, he said. A few billion years after the merger, the two original galaxies will no longer look like they used to; instead, they will turn into one spiral-shaped galaxy called an elliptical galaxy, said Mr Sawala. Our corner of the universe, called the Local Group, consists of 100 other smaller galaxies, including some large ones like the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) and the Triangulum Galaxy. M33 is an Andromeda satellite, whereas the LMC orbits the Milky Way. Mr Frenk cautions that the Milky Way is more likely to collide with the LMC in the next 2 billion years, which might drastically alter our galaxy. Mr Sawala said, "The extra mass of Andromeda's satellite galaxy M33 pulls the Milky Way a little bit more towards it." According to Geraint Lewis, an astrophysics professor at the Institute for Astronomy at the University of Sydney, scientists are unsure whether the Milky Way and Andromeda will collide, but even if they do, the gravitational pull that each will exert on the other is likely to leave the two massive galaxies in an awful situation.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Once inevitable collision between Milky Way and Andromeda galaxies now seems less likely, astronomers say
Sign up for CNN's Wonder Theory science newsletter. Explore the universe with news on fascinating discoveries, scientific advancements and more. A collision between our Milky Way galaxy and its largest neighbor, the Andromeda galaxy, predicted to occur in about 4.5 billion years, has been anticipated by astronomers since 1912. But new research suggests that the likelihood of this galactic clash, dubbed 'Milkomeda,' is smaller than it seems. At first glance, it appears likely that the galactic duo — separated by about 2.5 million light-years — is on an inevitable collision course. The Milky Way and Andromeda are barreling toward each other at about 223,694 miles per hour (100 kilometers per second). However, the Local Group, or our corner of the universe, includes 100 known smaller galaxies. A team of astronomers factored in some of the largest among them, including the Large Magellanic Cloud, or LMC, and M33, or the Triangulum galaxy, to see how much of a role they might play on the chessboard of our galaxy's future over the next 10 billion years. After factoring in the gravitational pull of Local Group galaxies and running 100,000 simulations using new data from the Hubble and Gaia space telescopes, the team found there is about a 50% chance of a collision between the Milky Way and Andromeda in the next 10 billion years. There is only about a 2% chance the galaxies will collide in 4 to 5 billion years as previously thought, according to the study published Monday in the journal Nature Astronomy. A merger of the Milky Way and Andromeda galaxies would destroy them both, eventually turning both spiral structures into one elongated galaxy, the study authors said. Collisions between other galaxies have been known to create 'cosmic fireworks, when gas, driven to the center of the merger remnant, feeds a central black hole emitting an enormous amount of radiation, before irrevocably falling into the hole,' said study coauthor Carlos Frenk, professor at Durham University in England. 'Until now we thought this was the fate that awaited our Milky Way galaxy,' Frenk said. 'We now know that there is a very good chance that we may avoid that scary destiny.' However, there are many unknown factors that make it difficult to predict the ultimate fate of our galaxy, according to the study authors. And, Frenk warns, the Milky Way has a greater chance of colliding with the LMC within 2 billion years, which could fundamentally alter our galaxy. The LMC orbits the Milky Way, while M33 is a satellite of Andromeda. The LMC's mass is only about 15% of the Milky Way's. But the team found that the satellite galaxy has a gravitational pull, perpendicular to Andromeda, that changes the Milky Way's motion enough to reduce the chance of a merger between the two giant galaxies. It's a similar case for M33. 'The extra mass of Andromeda's satellite galaxy M33 pulls the Milky Way a little bit more towards it,' said lead study author Dr. Till Sawala, astronomer at the University of Helsinki in Finland. 'However, we also show that the LMC pulls the Milky Way off the orbital plane and away from Andromeda. It doesn't mean that the LMC will save us from that merger, but it makes it a bit less likely.' Previous research also has assumed most likely values for unknown data, such as the uncertainties in the present positions, motions and masses of the Local Group galaxies. In the new study, the team accounted for 22 different variables, including those unknowns, that could contribute to a collision. 'We ran many thousands of simulations, which allowed us to account for all the observational uncertainties,' Sawala said. 'Because there are so many variables that each have their errors, that accumulates to rather large uncertainty about the outcome, leading to the conclusion that the chance of a direct collision is only 50% within the next 10 billion years.' In just over half of the simulations predicting what could occur in 8 to 10 billion years, the Milky Way and Andromeda galaxies initially sailed somewhat closely past each other before circling back and then losing enough orbital energy to collide and merge as one galaxy. These initial close encounters between each galaxy's halo — a large envelope of gas — would eventually lead to a collision. 'In general, the merger would most likely involve a strong starburst, during which many new stars would form, followed by a period of intense radiation caused by exploding young stars and the newly active supermassive black hole, eventually shutting down star formation completely,' Sawala said. 'A few billion years later, any traces of the former Milky Way and Andromeda would disappear, and the remnant would be a largely featureless elliptical galaxy.' In the other simulations, both galaxies crossed paths without disturbing each other. Geraint Lewis, a professor of astrophysics at the University of Sydney's Institute for Astronomy, finds the results showing the gravitational influence of M33 and the LMC interesting. He has previously authored research on a potential collision between Andromeda and the Milky Way. 'We won't know if the collision is definitely off in the future, but this clearly shows that the story that people tell — that there will be a collision that will destroy the Milky Way and Andromeda — is not as clear or certain that people think,' Lewis said. 'But even if there is a pretty close encounter rather than smashing head-on, the gravitational tearing that each will assert on each other is likely to leave the two large galaxies in a sorry state.' While including the LMC's gravitational effects on the Milky Way is important, accounting for uncertainties is the most important aspect of the new study, said Scott Lucchini, a postdoctoral fellow in the Institute for Theory and Computation at the Center for Astrophysics, Harvard & Smithsonian. 'Here, they've sampled from the uncertainties in the positions, velocities, and masses of the galaxies to obtain the relative probabilities of different outcomes,' Lucchini wrote in an email. 'This really gives us the whole picture of what could happen in the future.' Galaxies are full of intricacies. Their shapes can become distorted, interactions can change their orbits and they can lose mass in different ways. Such complexities make predictions difficult, Lucchini said. That essentially leaves the fate of the Milky Way 'completely open,' the study authors wrote in the new paper. However, more data coming from the Gaia space telescope in the summer of 2026 will provide measurements that refine some of the uncertainties about the speed and direction at which Andromeda is moving across the sky, Sawala said. The fate of the sun may have a bigger impact on Earth's future than the motions of galaxies, according to the researchers. Our sun is 4.5 billion years old. When it starts to die in another 5 billion years, it will swell into a red giant that engulfs Mercury, Venus and potentially Earth, according to NASA. 'The short answer is that the end of the sun is far worse for our planet than the collision with Andromeda,' Sawala said. 'While that merger would mean the end of our galaxy, it would not necessarily be the end of the sun or the Earth. Although our work also shows that earlier studies, that purported to predict precisely what the fate of the solar system would be after the merger, were clearly premature, in general, collisions between stars or planets are extremely rare during galaxy mergers. And while the end of the sun is certain, our study shows that the end of the galaxy is anything but.' While the team didn't model a merger between the LMC and the Milky Way in detail, they found a 'virtual certainty' that a merger between the two galaxies will occur within the next 2 billion years, which aligns with previous research, Sawala said. But the effects will likely be more minor than a merger between the Milky Way and Andromeda. 'The merger (between the Milky Way and the LMC) will not destroy our galaxy but it will change it profoundly, particularly impacting our central supermassive black hole and the galactic halo,' Frenck wrote in an email. He also served as a coauthor on a 2019 paper on the potential merger.
