Astronomers Discover New Galaxy Born 12 Billion Light Years Ago

The star formation triggered by the Sagittarius dwarf galaxy in its current approximation to the Milky Way is seen in an illustration. Reuters
The star formation triggered by the Sagittarius dwarf galaxy in its current approximation to the Milky Way is seen in an illustration. Reuters
TT
20

Astronomers Discover New Galaxy Born 12 Billion Light Years Ago

The star formation triggered by the Sagittarius dwarf galaxy in its current approximation to the Milky Way is seen in an illustration. Reuters
The star formation triggered by the Sagittarius dwarf galaxy in its current approximation to the Milky Way is seen in an illustration. Reuters

Astronomers have discovered a very young galaxy that looks surprisingly like our Milky Way, appearing as a ring of light at a distance of 12 billion light years in the dark universe. The galaxy, named SPT0418-47, is so far away its light has taken more than 12 billion years to reach us.

Astronomers see it as it was when the Universe was just 1.4 billion years old, 10 percent of its current age, according to data by European Southern Observatory (ESO), a partner in this discovery. At the time, these baby galaxies were just beginning to develop, AFP reported.

The galaxy, which was discovered using the ALMA Telescope in northern Chile, looks surprisingly like our Milky Way and has a similar rotating disc and large group of stars packed tightly around the galactic center. This discovery surprised astronomers who never thought such a galaxy could be formed 12 billion light years ago. "This is the first time a bulge has been seen this early in the history of the Universe, making SPT0418-47 the most distant Milky Way look-alike," ESO said.

This unexpected discovery suggests no disturbances or instabilities in the young galaxy which seems very calm. This made astronomers believe that "this Universe may not be as chaotic as once believed and raises many questions on how a young galaxy could have formed so soon after the Big Bang."

Co-author Simona Vegetti, from the Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics, said: "What we found was quite puzzling; despite forming stars at a high rate, and therefore being the site of highly energetic processes, SPT0418-47 is the most well-ordered galaxy disc ever observed in the early Universe."

The findings were published in the journal Nature.



Greece to Build Escape Port on Santorini as Quakes Continue

FILE PHOTO: People board a ferry to Piraeus, during an increased seismic activity on the island of Santorini, Greece, February 4, 2025. REUTERS/Alkis Konstantinidis/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: People board a ferry to Piraeus, during an increased seismic activity on the island of Santorini, Greece, February 4, 2025. REUTERS/Alkis Konstantinidis/File Photo
TT
20

Greece to Build Escape Port on Santorini as Quakes Continue

FILE PHOTO: People board a ferry to Piraeus, during an increased seismic activity on the island of Santorini, Greece, February 4, 2025. REUTERS/Alkis Konstantinidis/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: People board a ferry to Piraeus, during an increased seismic activity on the island of Santorini, Greece, February 4, 2025. REUTERS/Alkis Konstantinidis/File Photo

Greece will soon set up an evacuation port on the island of Santorini to facilitate the safe escape of people in case a bigger quake hits the popular tourist destination, a Greek minister said on Monday.
Santorini, a volcanic island in the Aegean Sea, has been shaken by tens of thousands of mild quakes since late January, forcing thousands of people to flee, and authorities to ban construction activity, and shut schools and nearby islands.
No major damage has been reported but scientists have said the seismic activity was unprecedented even in a quake-prone country like Greece and have not ruled out bigger tremors.
They have identified the main ferry port at the foot of a precipitous slope and other sites across Santorini as weak links, although they have not said they cannot be used in an emergency situation, Reuters reported.
Civil Protection Minister Vassilis Kikilias said Greece will build an evacuation port for the safe docking of passenger ferries until a new port infrastructure is in place.
"Along with the new port in Santorini which is being prepared, there was a decision for setting up an escape port on the part of the island where passenger ferries would be able to dock in an emergency," he said in an interview with Greek ANT1 television.
Although the tremors lessened over the weekend, local authorities extended emergency measures for a third week on Sunday and reiterated calls for people to stay away from coastal areas and steep hillsides prone to landslides.
"This story is not over," Costas Papazachos, a seismology professor, and a spokesperson for the Santorini quakes told public broadcaster ERT.
"Both authorities and habitants should get used to a rather unpleasant situation for some time, it could be another two, three months."
Santorini took its current shape following one of the largest volcanic eruptions in history, around 1600 BC.
Seismologists have said the latest seismic activity, the result of moving tectonic plates and magma, has pushed subsurface layers of the island upwards.