When two objects collide, what happens?
A new study says that they create one of the largest shock waves in the universe.
Abell 3667 is a cluster of galaxys located about 730 million light-years away from Earth. Abell 3667 is a collection of two clusters of galaxies colliding into one another.
It is not readily apparent to most telescopes, but the collision has created a huge shock wave that can only be seen in radio waves.
The most detailed picture of this enormous wave has been captured by a new study. The structures of the shock wave's radio component are more complex than previous observations were able to show.
The lead study author said that the shock waves act as giant particle accelerators and accelerate electrons almost to the speed of light.
The shock wave first hit about 1 billion years ago when the two galaxy clusters that make up Abell 3667 first collided. The largest amount of energy in the universe has been released by two of the most enormous structures in the universe.
As the wave shot electrons into space at near-light-speed, the particles tore through magnetic fields in the region, emitting the twin arcs of radio waves seen today. The researchers found that the radio arcs are about 13 million light-years apart from each other, and each is 60 times larger than the entire Milky Way galaxy.
The researchers said that it was one mighty explosion and one spectacular view.
It was originally published on Live Science.
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