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Astronomers have found out how giant elliptical galaxies appeared. These discoveries help to better understand the evolution of the universe and the processes that took place in the first billion years.
For decades, astronomers have tried to understand how giant elliptical galaxies formed in the early universe. These massive structures, resembling inflated rugby balls, are very different from the flat disk of the Milky Way. A new study published in the journal Nature has finally brought scientists closer to solving this mystery
Astronomers have studied more than 100 ancient galaxies with active star formation using ALMA, the world's largest radio telescope. Scientists have used a new method of analyzing the distribution of light emitted by distant galaxies.
The results showed that the inflated shape of giant galaxies appeared due to violent star formation in their cores. This explains why such structures formed so quickly - stars were born there 10-100 times faster than in the Milky Way.
One of the oldest galaxies known to scientists. Photo: NASA
How did it happen?
Scientists believe that the main factors were:
- Powerful streams of cold gas. They fed galaxies, providing material for star formation.
- A collision of galaxies. During the merger of disc galaxies, gas moved toward their centers, causing trillions of new stars to form.
These processes took place 8-12 billion years ago, when the universe was going through a turbulent period of evolution.
Why is this important?
The new study not only explains how giant galaxies formed, but also opens the way to a complete picture of their evolution.
Astronomers plan to combine data with the results of the Webb and Euclid telescopes to study these objects in more detail. This will help to understand how the universe developed in the first billion years.
The study changes the way we think about the evolution of space and provides answers to questions that remained unexplained for decades. Scientists are sure that new discoveries lie ahead.
