starburst galaxy

From the smallest of irregular and dwarf galaxies, to the most spectacular of spirals, to the most massive of ellipticals, there’s no denying that galaxies are incredible objects.

On this blog, we’ve covered a great deal of information about galaxies. We’ve followed their stories from the dawn of time in the universe to the present day, and we’ve explored all their different shapes and sizes, their masses, and the forces that shape their evolution.

If it seems like a lot, I understand.

So, let’s round up what we know and boil it down to a summary. Hopefully I can make galaxies more easily digestible!

(Though I do hope none of you actually try to eat one… 😉)

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Ever since astronomers realized that the mysterious, fuzzy objects known as “spiral nebulae” were, in fact, separate galaxies beyond our own, we’ve sought to understand the stories of galaxies.

We’ve since discovered that most galaxies are found in galaxy clusters. There are two types: rich clusters, which are home to thousands of galaxies, and poor clusters like our own “Local Group,” which are home to only a few dozen to a few hundred galaxies.

We’ve also discovered that collisions between galaxies are quite common, and can drastically alter their shapes.

And we’ve observed something even more curious. Spiral galaxies, like our own Milky Way, are most often found in poor clusters. Rich clusters are dominated by elliptical galaxies.

It would seem that spiral galaxies thrive best in uncrowded galactic environments.

But what can that tell us about galactic evolution?

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