The greatest three-dimensional map of the Milky Way has been developed by an international team of scientists, and the results have been published in the journal Science.
Our planet isn't flat, and guess what? Neither is our
galaxy. |
Researchers created a 3D map that shows the S-shaped
structure of the Milky Way galaxy's combined star disc, our cosmic address, by
calculating the distance from our Sun to hundreds of pulsating stars spread
around our galaxy.
“Our map shows that the Milky Way disk is not flat. Instead,
it is deformed and twisted in shape,” revealed study co-author Przemek Mróz of
the University of Warsaw in Poland.“This is the first time we can use
individual objects to display it in three dimensions,” he added.
Much of our present understanding of the spiral shape and
structure of our galaxy is based on indirect observations of celestial objects
and conclusions based on other distant galaxies in the Universe.
However, as scientists have discovered, the galactic map
provided by these restricted observations is insufficient.
The classical Cepheids (giant stars that burn hundreds, if
not thousands, of times brighter than our Sun) pulse frequently and are visible
through the huge interstellar dust clouds that often cover less luminous
interstellar objects, much like numerous distant lighthouses.
Distances to these stars may be estimated precisely owing to
periodic fluctuations in brightness.
Dorota Skowron of Warsaw University, in collaboration with
scientists from Ohio State University in the United States and the University
of Warwick in the United Kingdom, traced the distance to over 2,400 cepheids
along the Milky Way, the majority of which were discovered by the Optical
Gravitational Lensing Experiment (OGLE), a project that helped double the
number of known galactic classical cepheids.
The researchers were able to create an extremely precise
three-dimensional model of the Milky Way by assigning coordinates to each
distant pulsing star in reference to our Sun.
As a consequence, a beautiful, never-before-seen map of the
Milky Way Galaxy has been created.
The findings of the study have helped astronomers better
grasp our cosmic surroundings and precisely depict the form of the galaxy.
And it's not flat, but it does have an unusual form.
As noted by Space.com, “this new map helped reveal more
details on distortions that astronomers had “previously detected in the shape
of the Milky Way.”
The map took scientists six years to create, but as
participating astronomers disclosed, "it was worth it."
At a distance of almost 25,000 light-years from the galactic
core, we discovered that the galaxy's disc is not flat. It's twisted. This bending
might have been generated by interactions between the galaxy and nearby
galaxies, intergalactic gas, or even dark matter.
“Warping of the galactic disk has been detected before, but
this is the first time we can use individual objects to trace its shape in
three dimensions,” explained Mróz in a statement.
The quantity of 'warping' observed in our galaxy was
shockingly pronounced, according to the researchers.
“It is not some statistical fact available only to a
scientist’s understanding,” Mróz said. “It is apparent by eye.”