Revolutionary discovery. The Small Magellanic Cloud turns out to be two different galaxies

December 28, 23:04 Share:

The Small Magellanic Cloud turns out to be two galaxies (Photo: ESO/VISTA VMC)

A study by an international team of astronomers shows that the MMC is not one, but two galaxies.

This scientific breakthrough was achieved after careful analysis of data from ESA's Gaia space observatory and Australia's Pathfinder.

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The Magellanic Clouds, known as two irregular dwarf galaxies, have been associated with many years of observation and research.. However, in the late 1980s, there were suggestions that the MMC may represent two separate galaxies. New evidence presented by a team of astronomers supports this hypothesis.

To gain a deeper understanding of the nature of the SMC and its constituent parts, scientists analyzed ESA's Gaia data, measuring the average speed of stars in different parts of the galaxy.

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In addition, data from the Pathfinder radio telescope was used to study the interstellar medium. The results of the study revealed that the two parts of the MMO have different chemical compositions and move at different speeds.

However, the scientific community is not limited only to these results. The researchers note that the closer of the two galaxies is approximately 199,000 light-years from Earth, while the more distant one is 215,000 light-years away.

This new understanding of the structure of the Small Magellanic Cloud opens new horizons for astronomy.

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