Prof. Amina Helmi - Formation of the Milky Way

Ten billion years ago, the Milky Way merged with a large galaxy. The stars from this partner, named Gaia-Enceladus, make up most of the Milky Way’s halo and also shaped its thick disk, giving it its inflated form. A description of this mega-merger, discovered by an international team led by University of Groningen astronomer prof. Amina Helmi, was published in the journal Nature on 1 November 2018.