Dec 21 2004
From The Space Library
Researchers using images from NASA's Galaxy Evolution Explorer (GALEX) found evidence of dozens of newly forming galaxies, a discovery that challenged prevailing scientific understanding of the creation of galaxies. Many astronomers believe that the universe began 13.7 billion years ago after a massive explosion of dense matter ~ an event often referred to as the Big Bang ~ and that galaxy and star formation peaked around 8 to 10 billion years ago. However, the researchers using the GALEX data had found evidence of 36 massive galaxies, ranging in age from 100 million to 1 billion years old and producing stars at a prodigious rate. The findings suggested that the new formation of galaxies had not ended as early as scientists had believed, and that the peak of galaxy formation had occurred later than previously thought. (Dennis Overbye, “Three Dozen New Galaxies Are Found in Nearby Space,” New York Times, 22 December 2004; NASA, “Aging Universe May Still Be Spawning Massive Galaxies,” news release 04-405, 21 December 2004.
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