Andromeda galaxy (Messier 31, M31, or NGC 224 and originally the Andromeda Nebula ) is our nearest galaxy about 2.5 million light-years far. The mass of the Andromeda Galaxy is of the same order of magnitude as that of the Milky Way.
The Halo if it is visible. |
It is expected to collide with Milky Way in about 4.5 billion years and form an elliptical galaxy. It is recently proven as scientists using NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope have mapped the halo of Andromeda entering our Milky Way!
Halo: an immense envelope of gas.
This light and invisible halo extends from her parent galaxy(about 1.3 million light-years) and are halfway through of ours. It is a layered structure with a complex one inside it.
The outer shell is smoother and hotter, whereas the inner is long. The difference may have formed due to numerous supernova explosions.
The halo is found by quasars, which acts as a torchlight. Because we live inside the Milky Way, scientists cannot easily interpret the signature of our own galaxy’s halo. However, they believe the halos of Andromeda and the Milky Way must be very similar. The two galaxies are on a collision course and will merge to form a giant elliptical galaxy beginning about 4 billion years from now.
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