Milky Way Grew By A Quarter In Cosmic Collision 10 Billion Years Ago, Astronomers Say
(WorldNews Spain)

Around 10 billion years ago, the Milky Way merged with a galaxy one quarter of its mass in a major cosmic crash, according to new research published in the journal Nature Astronomy on Monday, Deutsche Welle reports. The results help solve a major piece of the puzzle behind the birth of our galaxy. Previous studies had shown that the Milky Way contained two different sets of stars, but the timeline of the collision remained unclear. The crash between the Milky Way and a dwarf galaxy dubbed Gaia-Enceladus not only expanded the size of our galaxy, but also sped up the formation of stars in a period lasting between 2 to 4 billion years. `Yes, indeed it was a pivotal moment,` astronomer Carme...