What Is The Ultimate Fate Of The Loneliest Galaxy In The Universe?
In the middle of a great cosmic void, a single, isolated galaxy persists amidst the darkness. It’s about to get a lot lonelier.
Here in our own cosmic backyard, the Milky Way is just one galaxy among many. A slew of satellites galaxies accompany us on our journey through the Universe, and our nearby neighbor Andromeda outclasses us in terms of mass, stars, and even physical extent. All told, we’re just one of perhaps ~60 galaxies bound in our local group, which itself is a modestly small galaxy group on the outskirts of the enormous Virgo Cluster.
Not every galaxy is so fortunate, however. While galaxies are most commonly found bound together in large numbers, there are enormous cosmic voids separating the rich structures found throughout the Universe, with only tiny amounts of matter inside. One remarkable example is the galaxy MCG+01–02–015, which is the only one around for some 100 million light-years in all directions. It’s the loneliest galaxy in the known Universe, and we can scientifically predict its ultimate fate.
