Oliver Willis

Like Kryptonite To Stupid

Four Galaxies Are Currently Colliding

July 9th, 2009 Space 18 Comments

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Sorry if you didn’t hear me, but FOUR GALAXIES ARE CURRENTLY COLLIDING. Is Starfleet on this? Has anyone told the twelve colonies? What about Buzz Lightyear and Star Command? Anyone?

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18 Responses to “Four Galaxies Are Currently Colliding”

1. DaveH says:

   July 9, 2009 at 9:52 pm

   Oh, the Alienity!

   Actually, if their are sentient beings living in those galaxies…
2. Southern Quaker says:

   July 9, 2009 at 10:02 pm

   It would be quite a fireworks show. Stars don’t collide – big clouds of gas and dust do, but not stars or planets. Not to mention the fact that the “collision” will take millions of years.

   So it’s likely Buzz, Yoda, and ET will be fine.
3. mike in dc says:

   July 9, 2009 at 10:42 pm

   Awesome premise for a sci fi setting though…a collision between different alien empires?
4. Zython says:

   July 9, 2009 at 11:02 pm

   Galaxies collide all the time. While four at the same time is interesting, stuff like this is fairly common.
5. justadood says:

   July 9, 2009 at 11:24 pm

   @mike in dc…kinds sorta already done…cheeck out E.E. Smith’s ‘Lensman’ series….classic SciFi Spqce Opera…
6. jrfunkenstein says:

   July 9, 2009 at 11:25 pm

   ‘Is Starfleet on this?’

   Starfleet! Hah! You talk and you talk but you have no gramba!
7. James E. Powell says:

   July 10, 2009 at 12:45 am

   Currently? Based on the estimated distance, whatever we are seeing happened 200-300 million years ago.
8. Rheinhard says:

   July 10, 2009 at 12:57 am

   @DaveH – actually any sentient beings in those galaxies are very lucky. We think of galaxies as solid objects, like giant pinwheels, but they’re collections of discrete particles. The particles just happen to be stars. The probability of stars or planetary systems colliding is astronomically low. But any beings on planets in those galaxies would look up to see an amazing and awesome night sky display! I am sad that I won’t be around in a few million years when the Andromeda galaxy will be looming large across our night sky!
9. pablo says:

   July 10, 2009 at 9:40 am

   If, in fact, there is life on other planets, then the sound I just heard is “as if millions of voices suddenly cried out in terror and were suddenly silenced”
10. Duros62 says:

    July 10, 2009 at 1:34 pm

    Actually, if there are sentient beings living in those galaxies…

    …they most likely won’t even notice.
11. Duros62 says:

    July 10, 2009 at 1:42 pm

    The bright spiral galaxy at the center of the image is punching through the cluster at almost two million miles per hour.

    LOOK OUT!!!!

    *tires squeeling*
12. Duros62 says:

    July 10, 2009 at 1:44 pm

    Awesome premise for a sci fi setting though…a collision between different alien empires?

    Our solar system goes from 9 planets to 27?
13. buma says:

    July 10, 2009 at 2:00 pm

    OK, how do the experts know the galaxies are not merely aligned with each other when veiwed from our vantage point? The one on the left looks a little closer than the one in the middle.
14. Quaker in a Basement says:

    July 10, 2009 at 2:04 pm

    So which galaxy’s management will have control after the merger?
15. Southern Quaker says:

    July 10, 2009 at 2:10 pm

    buma,

    Distance and velocity measurements, basically. The distance to each galaxy can be obtained through supernova measurements, indicating that they are quite close to one another. Velocity measurements indicate that they are moving around a common center, towards one another.
16. Duros62 says:

    July 10, 2009 at 2:28 pm

    Actually, if there are sentient beings living in those galaxies…

    Hey, when did we get another moon? Has that always been there?
17. Zython says:

    July 11, 2009 at 5:57 am

    If, in fact, there is life on other planets, then the sound I just heard is “as if millions of voices suddenly cried out in terror and were suddenly silenced”

    Actually, they probably wouldn’t notice.
18. Frank DiSalle says:

    July 11, 2009 at 7:59 pm

    I think the President should appoint a “Colliding Galaxies Czar” to address this issue.