Sextans: The smallest cannibal galaxy discovered until now

A team at the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC) has discovered a new case of galactic cannibalism in the neighbourhood of the Milky Way, which has caused the merging of two galaxies on the smallest scale so far known

The Sextans galaxy has a mass some 100,000 times less than that of the Milky Way but has swallowed an even smaller companion. Using data form the Victor M. Blanco Telescope (4m diameter) at the Cerro Tololo Interamerican Observatory and the Landon Clay 6 m telescope, also known as Magellan 2, at the Las Campanas Observatory, both in Chile, they observed clear signs that Sextans had absorbed a smaller stellar system.

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Credit: Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias

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Zoom Into Cannibal Galaxy Centaurus A

A new technique using near-infrared images, obtained with ESOs 3.58-meter New Technology Telescope (NTT), allows astronomers to see through the opaque dust lanes of the giant cannibal galaxy Centaurus A, unveiling its last meal in unprecedented detail — a smaller spiral galaxy, currently twisted and warped. This amazing image also shows thousands of star clusters, strewn like glittering gems, churning inside Centaurus A.