Unknown phenomenon discovered in the Universe in 2021. Three dozen dwarf galaxies distant from each other had simultaneous births of new stars. This was an unexpected discovery that challenged theories about how galaxies develop.
Unknown Extra-galactic Network of Social Networks
Galaxies that are more than 1,000,000 light-years apart should be able to live independent lives, in terms the when they give rise to new stars. According to a Rutgers-led research published in the journal, galaxies that are separated by more than 13 million light years slowed down their star birth rates and then accelerated them simultaneously. Astrophysical Journal.
A large cosmic filament could be an option, but we don’t yet know enough about this phenomena to infer its cause.”
“It appears that these galaxies are responding to a large-scale change in their environment in the same way a good economy can spur a baby boom,” said lead author Charlotte Olsen, a doctoral student in the Department of PhysicsAstronomy and more Rutgers University.
“We found that regardless of whether these galaxies were next-door neighbors or not, they stopped and then started forming new stars at the same time, as if they’d all influenced each other through some extra-galactic social network,” said co-author Eric Gawiser, Professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy.
Is it connected to a Large Cosmic Filement?
“A large cosmic filament could be an option, but we don’t yet know enough about this phenomena to infer its cause,” said Olsen in reply to an email from The Daily Galaxy. “Before speculating about whether a large-scale environmental effect could be responsible for this finding, we want to get a better handle on its extent. We must look at the Local Volume and the wider universe to determine if this is a local phenomenon or if it’s happening across the globe simultaneously. Once we know that, we might be able to start drawing conclusions, or at least ruling things out.”
A phenomenon in the universe we don’t yet know about?
The decrease in stellar birth rates in 36 dwarf galaxies started 6 billion years ago. The increase began 3 billion. Understanding how galaxies develop requires unravelling the complex processes that influence them over their lives (billions of year). Star formation is one the most fundamental processes. The stellar birth rate may increase when galaxies interact or collide. Galaxies can also stop creating new stars if most of the gas (mainly hydrogen) that makes them is lost.
Star formation histories can paint a rich record of environmental conditions as a galaxy “grew up.” Dwarf galaxies are the most common but least massive type of galaxies in the universe, and they are especially sensitive to the effects of their surrounding environment.
A Phenomenon in the Universe We Don’t Yet Know About
The 36 dwarf galaxies covered an array of environments that were as far away as 13 million light years from the Milky Way. The galaxies must have experienced an environmental change that distributed fuel to galaxies far away. That could mean encountering a huge cloud of gas, for example, or a phenomenon in the universe we don’t yet know about, according to Olsen.
Two methods were used by the scientists to compare the star formation histories. The first uses light from individual galaxies, while the second uses light from whole galaxies.
Full Impact of the Discovery Not Yet Known
“The full impact of the discovery is not yet known as it remains to be seen how much our current models of galaxy growth need to be modified to understand this surprise,” Gawiser said. “If the result cannot be explained within our current understanding of cosmology, that would be a huge implication, but we have to give the theorists a chance to read our paper and respond with their own research advances.”
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“The James Webb Space Telescope, scheduled to be launched by NASA this October, will be the ideal way to add that new data to find out just how far outwards from the Milky Way this ‘baby boom’ extended,” Olsen added.
Maxwell Moe, astrophysicist, NASA Einstein FellowUniversity of Arizona via Rutgers UniversityCharlotte Olsen
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Maxwell Moe (astrophysicist, NASA Einstein Fellow University of Arizona), Maxwell Moe Max is often found at Kitt Peak National Observatory two nights per week, exploring the mysteries of the Universe. Max received his Ph.D. from Harvard University in 2015 in astronomy.
