Figure eights and peanut shells: How stars move at the center of the galaxy
Wednesday, November 27, 2013 - 12:23
in Astronomy & Space
Two months ago astronomers created a new 3-D map of stars at the center of our Galaxy (the Milky Way), showing more clearly than ever the bulge at its core. Previous explanations suggested that the stars that form the bulge are in banana-like orbits, but a new article suggests that the stars probably move in peanut-shell or figure of eight-shaped orbits instead.