Northwestern has issued a press release, Milky Way’s origins are not what they seem: Study reveals that half of matter around us likely comes from far-flung galaxies, which begins:
“In a first-of-its-kind analysis, Northwestern University astrophysicists have discovered that, contrary to previously standard lore, up to half of the matter in our Milky Way galaxy may come from distant galaxies. As a result, each one of us may be made in part from extragalactic matter.
Using supercomputer simulations, the research team found a major and unexpected new mode for how galaxies, including our own Milky Way, acquired their matter: intergalactic transfer. The simulations show that supernova explosions eject copious amounts of gas from galaxies, which causes atoms to be transported from one galaxy to another via powerful galactic winds. Intergalactic transfer is a newly identified phenomenon, which simulations indicate will be critical for understanding how galaxies evolve.”
Please continue to the full Northwestern News Feature.
Read the paper, “The cosmic baryon cycle and galaxy mass assembly in the FIRE simulations” in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.
ROUNDUP OF MEDIA MENTIONS OF CIERA/NORTHWESTERN
July 28, 2017
“Half of our bodies’ atoms are from a galaxy far, far away: Scientists think they’ve found the oldest immigrant story of all time” by Christian Cotroneo in Mother Nature Network.
July 27, 2017
“The Intergalactic Winds That Built the Milky Way” by Marina Koren in The Atlantic.
“Half the atoms inside your body came from across the universe” by Aylin Woodward in New Scientist.
“We all could be made of extragalactic space matter from supernova explosions” by Sean Rossman in USA Today.
“Intergalactic transfer: Humans made of matter from distant galaxies, study suggests” by Mohak Gupta in India Today.
“We Are All Extragalactic Immigrants From Galaxies Far, Far Away” by Brid-Aine Parnell in Forbes.
“Half of your body may have formed from a galaxy far, far away” by Gianluca Mezzofiore in Mashable.
“We are galaxy stuff” by Deborah Byrd in SPACE.
“WE are the aliens: Life on Earth started in far flung galaxy TRANSFORMING Big Bang theory” by Sean Martin in Express.co.uk.
“Up To 50% of Milky Way’s Matter Have Extragalactic Origin, Astrophysicists Say” by staff writer in Sci-News.
“People made from alien atoms from a galaxy far, far away” by Tom Bawden in iNews.
“WE ARE MADE OF STARS: Half the atoms in every human are ALIEN in origin and come from outside the Milky Way” by Jasper Hamill in The Sun.
“Astronomers find ‘nearly half’ our bodies’ atoms formed outside the Milky Way” by staff writer in bdnews24.com.
“Milky Way’s origins are not what they seem” reprint of Northwestern News article in Phys.Org.
“Nearly half the Milky Way and everything in it may have formed from distant galaxies” by Libby Plummer in WIRED.
“Astroboffins discover that half of the Milky Way’s matter comes from other galaxies” by Chris Williams in The Register.
“Atoms in your body may come from distant galaxies” by Angus Bezzina in Cosmos.
“Humans might be made up of ‘extra-galactic matter’, along with everything else in the Milky Way” by staff writer in News Nation.
“Humans came from distant galaxies, new study claims” by the editor in Ripples Nigeria.
“Humans actually come from another galaxy – along with everything else” by Rob Waugh in Yahoo! News UK.
“Half of Our Galaxy Might Have Come From Other Galaxies” by Ryan F. Mandelbaum in Gizmodo.
“Humans came from galaxies, far, far away, scientists say” by staff writer in FOX NEWS Science.
“The Milky Way’s far-flung origins” by Nadia Blackshaw in Sky at Night Magazine.
“Turns out we may all be made of stardust, scientists say” by Zamira Rahim in CNN.
July 26, 2017
“Half of the Milky Way comes from other galaxies” by Ashley Yeager in ScienceNews.
“You Are Part Extragalactic, Study Says” by Becky Ferreira in Motherboard.
“We are all made of stars: half our bodies’ atoms ‘formed beyond the Milky Way’” by Ian Sample in The Guardian.
“As Much as Half of the Milky Way Likely Came From Distant Galaxies” by Nancy Atkinson in Seeker.
“Half of the matter around us comes from distant galaxies” by Swapna Krishna in engadget.
“‘We should consider ourselves extragalactic immigrants’: Surprising study finds HALF of the matter in the Milky Way comes from distant galaxies” by Shivali Best in Daily Mail.
“Milky Way’s origins are not what they seem” reprint of Northwestern News article in EurekAlert!
August 28, 2017
“Are we ‘Immigrants’ in our own Galaxy? Understanding Intergalactic Transfer” By Steve Lacy at Fox 5 News.