Milky Way Witnesses Mass Exodus of 'Runaway' Stars

Astronomers have discovered dozens of massive runaway stars fleeing the Milky Way, shedding light on the phenomenon of stellar ejection. Using data from the Gaia spacecraft and two stellar catalogues, researchers identified 106 runaway O-type stars and 69 runaway Be-type stars. The study suggests that the dynamical ejection scenario, involving gravitational interactions in densely packed star clusters, is more likely than the binary supernova scenario as the cause of these runaway stars. The findings highlight the dominance of massive stars in the runaway star population and contribute to our understanding of stellar dynamics in the Milky Way.