Monstrous Cosmic Gas Cloud Set To Ignite The Milky Way

Fores ^ | 28 Jan, 2016 | Ethan Siegel

[MtnClimber]

There are hundreds of high-velocity gas clouds moving at hundreds of km/s through the outskirts of our galaxy, mostly in stable orbits that keep them out of the galactic plane. They're typically irregularly shaped, thousands of light years across, and contain many millions of times the mass of our Sun. However, one such cloud, known as the "Smith Cloud" (above), is very different from all the others. It's much more distant, and it's moving towards us incredibly rapidly: at about 310 km/s, or around 700,000 miles per hour. And when I say it's moving towards us, it's projected to collide at extreme velocities with the disk of our galaxy in about 30 million years: a long time for a human, but a very short time for our galaxy. (For comparison, it takes our Sun about 200 million years to complete a single orbit around our galactic center.) Here's how we found this out.

[minnesota_bound]

I am thinking the pinwheel of our galaxy will fling it into the galactic void.

[Mr. K]

I have a degree in physics.

Do you really think we know all there is about travel between stars?

It may be impossible with today’s technology, but who knows in the future, FTL travel is theoretically possible.

Besides, I think there is ample evidence that we have already had visitors from other planets. So, it must be possible, if its already happened

[Mr. K]

I think the pinwheel shape means it is being sucked into the center.

an expanding galaxy would have a different shape

[central_va]

Mr. Einstein told me that the speed of light is a constant. He also told me it takes an infinite amount of energy to accelerate the tiniest piece of matter to the speed of light. E=mc²

[central_va]

Besides, I think there is ample evidence that we have already had visitors from other planets. So, it must be possible, if its already happened

[Rebelbase]

I’m hosed. Put all my money on the sun going supernova in a billion years.

[HartleyMBaldwin]

James Clerk Maxwell. Not Clark.

[SunkenCiv]

Note: this topic is from 01/29/2016. Thanks MtnClimber.

• Huge gas cloud will hit Milky Way [01/12/2008 9:49:08 AM PST]
• Cosmic Cloud on Collision Course [01/12/2008 11:20:45 AM PST]

from the varchive:

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