Astronomers have for the first time spotted two galaxies in the throes of a deep-space 맥스카지노duel.맥스카지노Related video above: The dark energy pushing our universe apart may not be what it seems, scientists sayUsing combined observations from ground-based telescopes over nearly four years, the researchers saw the distant galactic neighbors charging toward each other at more than 1.1 million miles per hour. One repeatedly wielded its intense beams of radiation at the other, dispersing gas clouds and weakening its opponent맥스카지노s ability to form new stars.맥스카지노That맥스카지노s why we call it a 맥스카지노cosmic joust,맥스카지노맥스카지노 said Pasquier Noterdaeme, a researcher for the Paris Institute of Astrophysics and the French-Chilean Laboratory for Astronomy in Chile who was part of the team that made the discovery.What Noterdaeme and his colleagues spied was a distant snapshot of the two galaxies in the process of merging into one large galaxy 11 billion light-years away. The findings, described in a study published Wednesday in the journal Nature, provide a rare look into earlier times in the universe, when star formation and galaxy mergers were more common.Zooming inWorking with the European Southern Observatory맥스카지노s Very Large Telescope (VLT) and the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) in Chile, the researchers found that the 맥스카지노attacking맥스카지노 galaxy맥스카지노s piercing radiation comes from within its bright core, a quasar, powered by a supermassive black hole.The intense gravitational influence of a black hole draws matter toward it in such an energetic way that dust and gas heat up to millions of degrees and become luminous, according to NASA. These luminous materials spiral around the black hole before entering, forming what맥스카지노s called an 맥스카지노accretion disk,맥스카지노 and jets of energetic matter beam out away from the center.Each blast of the quasar맥스카지노s ultraviolet waves is about a thousand times stronger than the radiation of our Milky Way, causing hydrogen molecules from some of the 맥스카지노victim맥스카지노 galaxy맥스카지노s star-forming nurseries to split and disperse, according to the study.Stars form when large clumps of gas and dust reach a critical mass and collapse under their own gravity. However, researchers observed that after being dispersed by the radiation, the clouds were not dense or large enough to create new stars.As additional material from the victim galaxy is drawn within reach of the supermassive black hole, it fuels the quasar with more energy. Quasars have been known to essentially 맥스카지노switch off맥스카지노 from time to time, said study coauthor Sergei Balashev, a researcher at the Ioffe Institute in St. Petersburg, Russia, which could give molecular clouds the opportunity to reform.맥스카지노It맥스카지노s really the first time that we can see the radiative effect of a quasar on the molecular gas of a nearby galaxy,맥스카지노 Balashev said. Until now, this effect had only been theorized but not confirmed through direct observation.Scientists initially wanted to observe this particular quasar more closely because of its unique features among thousands of low-resolution spectra, which are like fingerprints for distant celestial objects, offering clues about composition, temperature and activity within them.맥스카지노It맥스카지노s really (like) finding a needle in a haystack,맥스카지노 Balashev said. However, the light from quasars is so powerful that it often outshines their own host galaxies, making it difficult to observe other galaxies close by, according to Noterdaeme, the study맥스카지노s co-lead author.Highly dynamic, luminous quasars are rare, according to NASA. Only about 1,000 of these objects are known to exist in the early days of the universe, Anniek Gloudemans, a postdoctoral research fellow at the National Science Foundation맥스카지노s NOIRLab, previously told CNN via email.맥스카지노At first, we just knew there was some molecular gas between the (attacking galaxy맥스카지노s) quasar and us. It맥스카지노s only after, when we started to look with bigger telescopes, that we detected there were actually two galaxies,맥스카지노 Noterdaeme said.While the dueling pair appears to be overlapping in the low-resolution spectra, the high-resolution imaging capabilities of ALMA revealed the galaxies are actually separated by thousands of light-years. Using the Very Large Telescope, the researchers were able to study the density and distance of the gas affected by the quasar맥스카지노s radiation.Since the light from these objects came from billions of light-years away in the early universe, it맥스카지노s possible the two galaxies have already merged by now, but there is no way to be sure, Balashev said.A blast from the pastScientists believe quasars and galaxy mergers used to be far more common earlier in the universe맥스카지노s lifetime, said Dong-Woo Kim, an astrophysicist with the Harvard and Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics who was not involved in the research.Galaxies merge when they are pulled toward each other by gravity, and the universe used to be more densely packed together. Over time, the universe has expanded, and more galaxies have combined into larger ones, Kim said.Noterdaeme said that 10 billion years ago was an interesting time in the universe, adding that astronomers call this period when stars formed at a rapid rate the 맥스카지노noon of the universe.맥스카지노Though less frequent, galaxy mergers are still happening all the time, Kim said. Even our own Milky Way is expected to merge with the Andromeda galaxy in a few billion years, but the study team isn맥스카지노t certain yet whether the 맥스카지노cosmic joust맥스카지노 phenomenon is a common feature when two galaxies collide and form a larger one.맥스카지노It맥스카지노s an exciting field to study,맥스카지노 Kim said. 맥스카지노Research like this can teach us more about the birth of new galaxies and observe how they evolve over time.맥스카지노
Astronomers have for the first time spotted two galaxies in the throes of a deep-space 맥스카지노duel.맥스카지노
Related video above: The dark energy pushing our universe apart may not be what it seems, scientists say
Using combined observations from ground-based telescopes over nearly four years, the researchers saw the distant galactic neighbors charging toward each other at more than 1.1 million miles per hour. One repeatedly wielded its intense beams of radiation at the other, dispersing gas clouds and weakening its opponent맥스카지노s ability to form new stars.
맥스카지노That맥스카지노s why we call it a 맥스카지노cosmic joust,맥스카지노맥스카지노 said Pasquier Noterdaeme, a researcher for the Paris Institute of Astrophysics and the French-Chilean Laboratory for Astronomy in Chile who was part of the team that made the discovery.
What Noterdaeme and his colleagues spied was a distant snapshot of the two galaxies in the process of merging into one large galaxy 11 billion light-years away. The findings, described in a study published Wednesday in the journal , provide a rare look into earlier times in the universe, when star formation and galaxy mergers were more common.
Zooming in
Working with the European Southern Observatory맥스카지노s (VLT) and the (ALMA) in Chile, the researchers found that the 맥스카지노attacking맥스카지노 galaxy맥스카지노s piercing radiation comes from within its bright core, a quasar, powered by a supermassive black hole.
The intense gravitational influence of a draws matter toward it in such an energetic way that dust and gas heat up to millions of degrees and become luminous, . These luminous materials spiral around the black hole before entering, forming what맥스카지노s called an 맥스카지노accretion disk,맥스카지노 and jets of energetic matter beam out away from the center.
ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO)/S. Balashev and P. Noterdaeme et al. via CNN Newsource
An image taken by the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) shows the molecular gas content of the two galaxies involved in the cosmic joust.
Each blast of the quasar맥스카지노s ultraviolet waves is about a thousand times stronger than the radiation of our Milky Way, causing hydrogen molecules from some of the 맥스카지노victim맥스카지노 galaxy맥스카지노s star-forming nurseries to split and disperse, according to .
Stars form when large clumps of gas and dust reach a critical mass and collapse under their own gravity. However, researchers observed that after being dispersed by the radiation, the clouds were not dense or large enough to create new stars.
As additional material from the victim galaxy is drawn within reach of the supermassive black hole, it fuels the quasar with more energy. Quasars have been known to essentially 맥스카지노switch off맥스카지노 from time to time, said study coauthor Sergei Balashev, a researcher at the Ioffe Institute in St. Petersburg, Russia, which could give molecular clouds the opportunity to reform.
맥스카지노It맥스카지노s really the first time that we can see the radiative effect of a quasar on the molecular gas of a nearby galaxy,맥스카지노 Balashev said. Until now, this effect had only been theorized but not confirmed through direct observation.
Scientists initially wanted to observe this particular quasar more closely because of its unique features among thousands of low-resolution spectra, which are like fingerprints for distant celestial objects, offering clues about composition, temperature and activity within them.
맥스카지노It맥스카지노s really (like) finding a needle in a haystack,맥스카지노 Balashev said. However, the light from quasars is so powerful that it often outshines their own host galaxies, making it difficult to observe other galaxies close by, according to Noterdaeme, the study맥스카지노s co-lead author.
Highly dynamic, luminous quasars are rare, according to . Only about 1,000 of these objects are known to exist in the early days of the universe, Anniek Gloudemans, a postdoctoral research fellow at the National Science Foundation맥스카지노s NOIRLab, via email.
맥스카지노At first, we just knew there was some molecular gas between the (attacking galaxy맥스카지노s) quasar and us. It맥스카지노s only after, when we started to look with bigger telescopes, that we detected there were actually two galaxies,맥스카지노 Noterdaeme said.
While the dueling pair appears to be overlapping in the low-resolution spectra, the high-resolution imaging capabilities of ALMA revealed the galaxies are actually separated by thousands of light-years. Using the Very Large Telescope, the researchers were able to study the density and distance of the gas affected by the quasar맥스카지노s radiation.
Since the light from these objects came from billions of light-years away in the early universe, it맥스카지노s possible the two galaxies have already merged by now, but there is no way to be sure, Balashev said.
A blast from the past
Scientists believe quasars and galaxy mergers used to be far more common earlier in the universe맥스카지노s lifetime, said Dong-Woo Kim, an astrophysicist with the who was not involved in the research.
Galaxies merge when they are pulled toward each other by gravity, and the universe used to be more densely packed together. Over time, the universe has expanded, and more galaxies have combined into larger ones, Kim said.
Noterdaeme said that 10 billion years ago was an interesting time in the universe, adding that astronomers call this period when stars formed at a rapid rate the 맥스카지노noon of the universe.맥스카지노
Though less frequent, galaxy mergers are still happening all the time, Kim said. Even our own Milky Way is expected to merge with the Andromeda galaxy in a few billion years, but the study team isn맥스카지노t certain yet whether the 맥스카지노cosmic joust맥스카지노 phenomenon is a common feature when two galaxies collide and form a larger one.
맥스카지노It맥스카지노s an exciting field to study,맥스카지노 Kim said. 맥스카지노Research like this can teach us more about the birth of new galaxies and observe how they evolve over time.맥스카지노