After all, why do galaxies have different shapes?

The mysteries of space have intrigued many scientists over the years. Over the centuries, many astronomers have gradually contributed to science, so that today we have a great deal of knowledge about the universe that surrounds us.

Despite this, we are still far from understanding everything about the Universe, especially because there is an immense number of events, consequences and objects, all interconnected.

And that’s exactly what recent research has discovered: that our Universe may be more interconnected than it appears. Anyone with the slightest knowledge of the mysteries of space knows this.

There is a virtually incalculable amount of distance between celestial objects, be they stars, solar systems or even galaxies.

It is worth remembering that, as large as our Solar System is, it is one of the smallest in space. Therefore, the immense galaxies, which are composed of the various solar systems, are unimaginably large.

In other words, even if density and size are not relative, it is still possible to say that galaxies are extremely dense.

Through the teachings of the illustrious Albert Einstein with the theory of relativity, we discovered that the more mass an object has, the more it distorts the space-time around it.

Therefore, we can say that galaxies are equivalent, for space, to a billiard ball being dropped onto a stretched bedspread.

It will sink into that fabric and pull what’s around it towards itself. But what happens when you drop two billiard balls onto a stretched-out bedspread? Research published in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society gives us the answer.

Research explains why there are differences in the shapes of galaxies

The astronomers responsible for the research decided to take into account several phenomena present in galaxies for their research.

Such as star formation, black holes, active galactic nuclei, radioactive cooling, among others. Therefore, they concluded that the shapes of galaxies are mainly defined by the presence or absence of other galaxies around them.

This happens because, in clusters of galaxies, if one of them experiences an increase in density (with the formation of a black hole, for example), its density will attract matter from the neighboring galaxy, causing it to change its shape.

Just as galaxies that have an equivalent density can gradually approach each other, as is happening between the Milky Way and Andromeda, leading to a point where both will merge.