The Chaotic Merge: A Glimpse into the Fate of the Milky Way and Andromeda Galaxies

A new picture captured by the Gemini South Observatory shows NGC 7727, a peculiar galaxy in Aquarius, which provides a glimpse of what the future merger between the Milky Way and Andromeda galaxies might look like. The collision that created NGC 7727 began over a billion years ago and resulted in the formation of two black holes, which hold the records for being the closest supermassive black hole pair to Earth and the closest together pair ever seen. Astronomers estimate that these black holes will merge in about 250 million years, emitting violent ripples of gravitational waves. The merger will also lead to the formation of bright tidal tails filled with young stars and active stellar nurseries. While the Sun and the solar system will likely be flung into a different region of the galaxy, Earth is not in danger of being destroyed.