Galaxy mergers are when two galaxies come together and become one big galaxy.
Imagine you're playing with building blocks. You have a red block tower and a blue block tower. One day, they bump into each other and start mixing, some red blocks go to the blue tower, and some blue blocks go to the red tower. Eventually, it all becomes one big mixed-up block city.
How galaxy mergers happen
Galaxies are like space cities with stars as buildings and planets as roads. When two galaxies get close, they start pulling each other, just like how your friend might pull you when you're playing tag. This pulling makes them spin around each other, like a dance. Over millions of years, they slowly move closer until they finally crash into each other and become one super galaxy.
Sometimes, the new galaxy looks messy at first, like spilled blocks all over the floor, but eventually, everything settles into a beautiful new shape.
Examples
- A galaxy merger is when two galaxies stick together and become one bigger galaxy.
- Imagine two groups of stars coming together to form something new.
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See also
- What Is a Kilonova?
- What Makes Some Stars Explode Into Supernovas?
- What Makes Some Stars Explode and Others Simply Fade?
- What If Betelgeuse Exploded Right Now?
- What are structural disruption in galaxies?