Here was some big astronomy news that just occurred a bit over one week ago.
The largest galaxy ever found was discovered, which is actually pretty amazing. The scale of this galaxy is almost beyond our comprehension to grasp.
It is known as Alcyoneus, and is three billion light years away. Furthermore, it was described as being "a giant radio galaxy reaching 5 megaparsecs into space. That's 16.3 million light-years long, and constitutes the largest known structure of galactic origin."
Now, if you are anything like me, there will be an obvious question. Probably, it goes a little something like this: "What in the hell is a radio galaxy, and what is it reaching 5 megaparsecs into space even supposed to mean?"
Well, in layman's terms, here is how is was described:
Giant radio galaxies are yet another mystery in a Universe full of mysteries. They consist of a host galaxy (that's the cluster of stars orbiting a galactic nucleus containing a supermassive black hole), as well as colossal jets and lobes that erupt forth from the galactic center.
These jets and lobes, interacting with the intergalactic medium, act as a synchrotron to accelerate electrons that produce radio emission.
Alrighty, then. Hope that clears things up for you, as it obviously cleared it up for me.
This stuff really is fascinating. But it is also difficult to keep track and/or understand everything that goes on. I love science, or at least the idea of it. However, I just seem to lack the intelligence to fully grasp it, although I do at least keep trying.
Below is the link to the article:
The Biggest Galaxy Ever Found Has Just Been Discovered, And It Will Break Your Brain MICHELLE STARR15 FEBRUARY 2022:
https://www.sciencealert.com/at-over-16-million-light-years-across-this-is-the-biggest-galaxy-ever-discovered?fbclid=IwAR0n4SlxaEet-qiqlfWmhWL5BKzsoX8ifaNNaHb7XZo0gJsODT5TRsMUefA
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