View Laura K. Kinoshita's profileScientists are proposing a new theory for where the tiny "dwarf" galaxies orbiting in the halo of the Milky Way galaxy came from.
Dr. Elena D’Onghia and George Lake of the Institute for Theoretical Physics at the University of Zurich say the Magellanic Clouds and seven of the eleven known dwarf galaxies were probably part of a single group of galaxies billions of years ago.
They were sucked into the halo of the Milky Way galaxy when they drifted too close to the larger galaxy.
The researchers say the tiny galaxies -- which are extremely faint and dark -- are often found to be associated with one another. Several computer models and telescopic observations back up their theory.
The findings will help scientists explain the origins of the Milky Way galaxy, and how other galaxies like it may have formed in the Universe.
Read evidence for the theory in the Astrophysical Journal at:
http://arxiv.org/PS_cache/arxiv/pdf/0809/0809.3787v1.pdf
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