Milky Way Flipped in Collision with Dwarf Galaxy 10bn Years Ago 2026

The Milky Way was dramatically flipped on its side after a head-on collision with a dwarf galaxy called the Gaia Sausage about 10 billion years ago, astronomers have revealed. This cataclysmic event reshaped our galaxy long before the solar system formed, offering new insights into galactic evolution.

How the Milky Way Flipped After a Galaxy Collision

Using supercomputer simulations, researchers at Durham University found that the Milky Way likely experienced a “disc flip” of more than 90 degrees when it absorbed the Gaia Sausage. The collision tore the dwarf galaxy apart, but the momentum caused the entire disc of the Milky Way to reorient slowly over hundreds of millions of years.

“It probably takes at least a few hundred million years,” said Kirill Batrakov, lead researcher on the project. The discovery explains a long-standing mystery about the slow rotation of stars in the Milky Way’s halo.

Why Halo Stars Rotate Slowly

Previous data from the European Space Agency’s Gaia mission showed that stars in the Milky Way disc orbit at about 220 km per second, while halo stars circle at just 25 km per second. The simulations revealed that head-on collisions with dwarf galaxies like the Gaia Sausage produce these slow-moving halo stars.

Key Takeaways from the Research

• The Milky Way flipped by over 90 degrees after a head-on collision with the Gaia Sausage dwarf galaxy.
• The event occurred about 10 billion years ago, before the solar system existed.
• Supercomputer simulations at Durham University matched the observed slow rotation of halo stars.
• The disc flip took at least a few hundred million years to complete.

FAQ

This groundbreaking research sheds light on the violent history of our galaxy and confirms that the Milky Way has been reshaped by cosmic collisions. For more astronomy updates, stay tuned to GrandGoldman.com.