Scientists have discovered something incredible—the "ancient heart" of the Milky Way! It’s a group of about 18,000 stars that are some of the oldest in our galaxy, dating back more than 12 billion years. These stars formed when the universe was young and the Milky Way was just starting to take shape. They’re located deep in the center of the galaxy, in a region astronomers had a hard time studying because of all the dust and gas in the way. Using advanced telescopes and special tools, scientists were able to peek through the cosmic clutter and find these stars, giving us a glimpse into the Milky Way’s earliest days. Credit: Supermassive Black Hole: By NASA, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=22554706 Cosmic Fossil: By ESA/Hubble & NASA, F. Niederhofer, L. Girardi, https://science.nasa.gov/missions/hubble/hubble-observes-a-cosmic-fossil/ X-ray Spots: By NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center, https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/10991, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:A_Young_Star_Flaunts_its_X-ray_Spots.ogv Gaia: By ESA, https://www.esa.int/Science_Exploration/Space_Science/Gaia/Gaia_unravels_the_ancient_threads_of_the_Milky_Way PIA18928: By NASA/JPL-Caltech/Univ. of Toledo; E. Safron et al. – https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA18928, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=39170894 Magnetized Threads: NASA/CXC/UMass/Q.D. Wang; Radio: NRF/SARAO/MeerKAT, https://www.nasa.gov/image-article/magnetized-threads-weave-spectacular-galactic-tapestry-2/ Boy oh Boy: By RAK Records, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=23034104 Sagittarius A*: By X-ray: NASA/CXC/SAO; IR: NASA/HST/STScI. Inset: Radio (EHT Collaboration), https://www.nasa.gov/image-article/sagittarius-nasa-telescopes-support-event-horizon-telescope-studying-milky-ways-black-hole/ Milky-Way: By Evan-Amos, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=31556058 The Milky Way Galaxy: By NASA/JPL-Caltech/R. Hurt (SSC/Caltech), https://science.nasa.gov/resource/the-milky-way-galaxy/ CC BY 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0: GAIA: By DLR German Aerospace Center – https://flic.kr/p/npCLpn, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=32945546 CC BY-SA 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/: Schéma-gaia: By Pline, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=30246024 Maquette de Gaia: By Pline, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=26837220 HR-diag: By Spacepotato, Rursus, Bhutajata, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=2093830 CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/igo/: Gaia: By ESA/Gaia/DPAC, https://science.nasa.gov/mission/gaia/ sky from Gaia: By ESA/Gaia/DPAC., A. Moitinho., https://www.esa.int/ESA_Multimedia/Images/2020/12/The_colour_of_the_sky_from_Gaia_s_Early_Data_Release_3, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=97227885 the Milky Way: By Spacecraft: ESA/ATG medialab; Milky Way: ESA/Gaia/DPAC. Acknowledgement: A. Moitinho., https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=119243221, https://www.esa.int/ESA_Multimedia/Images/2022/06/Gaia_observes_the_Milky_Way multi-dimensional Milky Way: By ESA/Gaia/DPAC, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=119242974, https://www.esa.int/ESA_Multimedia/Images/2022/06/Gaia_Exploring_the_multi-dimensional_Milky_Way OortGAIA: By ESA/Gaia/DPAC – https://www.cosmos.esa.int/web/gaia/dr3-where-do-the-stars-go-or-come-from, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=119418419 Animation is created by Bright Side. —————————————————————————————- Music by Epidemic Sound https://www.epidemicsound.com Check our Bright Side podcast on Spotify and leave a positive review! https://open.spotify.com/show/0hUkPxD34jRLrMrJux4VxV Subscribe to Bright Side: https://goo.gl/rQTJZz —————————————————————————————- Our Social Media: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/brightside Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brightside.official TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@brightside.official?lang=en Stock materials (photos, footages and other): https://www.depositphotos.com https://www.shutterstock.com https://www.eastnews.ru —————————————————————————————- For more videos and articles visit: http://www.brightside.me
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