A river filled with stars has been discovered “flowing” through space in a galaxy 300 million light-years away from us.
This “river” is referred to by scientists as the Coma Stream, located in the constellation Coma Berenices, stretching an impressive 1.7 million light-years, making it the longest flow we have ever observed.
The massive flow represented by a dark streak in the middle, flowing between galaxies as observed by the William Herschel Telescope (Image: Science).
Astronomers estimate that this flow contains about 40 stars and 1,000 individual galaxies moving in the same general direction.
In the past, a group of galaxies known as NGC 4839 fell into the Coma Stream and were destroyed by massive jets. They subsequently cooled to the point of becoming invisible.
Coincidentally, this flow passes through our galaxy cluster. While it poses no threat to Earth, it may reveal secrets related to the structure of dark matter surrounding the Milky Way.
According to researchers, although this “river” appears quite large and serene, due to the inherent structure of the galaxy cluster, it may conceal a chaotic environment with interwoven gravitational forces, where the massive objects within continuously push and pull each other in all directions.
Essentially, it is no different from the streams of stars within the Milky Way, but on a much larger scale.
Nevertheless, this flow is not expected to last long according to scientists’ predictions. Fortunately, we currently have enough technology to observe its structure until it separates.
Astronomers hope that in the next 10 years, they can utilize larger observatories to conduct a more detailed analysis of this colossal population, thereby uncovering secrets we may have missed about the formation of the universe.
