Galaxies are huge.

Even small galaxies are made up of thousands of stars stretching over more space than the average person can truly understand.

Our own galaxy, the Milky Way, is a mid-sized galaxy, but did you know that there is another dwarf galaxy that orbits around the Milky Way?

If you live in the Southern Hemisphere, it is visible with the naked eye, looking like a fuzzy light at night. This dwarf galaxy is known as the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC).Close to that is a similar-looking object known as the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC).

Astronomers have been looking at these objects for as long as humans have been around, but modern scientists have been able to study them much more closely thanks to telescopes (both Earth-based and orbital). In the past, it was assumed that these two objects were two separate dwarf galaxies.

According to a new study that was published in the Astrophysical Journal Supplemental Series, however, it looks like it is just one dwarf galaxy that is in the process of being ripped apart.

This came as quite a surprise to the researchers. Kengo Tachihara is a co-lead author on the study and works with Nagoya University.

In a statement, he said:

“When we first got this result, we suspected that there might be an error in our method of analysis. However, upon closer examination, the results are indisputable, and we were surprised.”

The study looked at 7000 of the largest stars in the two Magellanic clouds. These large stars are easy to track since they are still young (relatively speaking) and short-lived (Again, relatively speaking. They will burn for millions of years before going supernova).

By tracking the motion of these stars, they could see that this dwarf galaxy is being ripped apart. This is almost certainly due, at least in part, to the gravitational pull of our own Milky Way. Tachihara continued:

“The stars in the SMC were moving in opposite directions on either side of the galaxy, as though they are being pulled apart. Some of these stars are approaching the LMC, while others are moving away from it, suggesting the gravitational influence of the larger galaxy. This unexpected movement supports the hypothesis that the SMC is being disrupted by the LMC, leading to its gradual destruction.”

Not only did the study find that this dwarf galaxy was being torn apart, but it also showed that the previous understanding of the mass of the galaxy and its history was likely wrong. Co-Lead author Satoya Nakano explained:

“If the SMC is indeed not rotating, previous estimates of its mass and its interaction history with the Milky Way and LMC might need to be revised. This could potentially change our understanding of the history of the three-body interaction between the two Magellanic Clouds and the Milky Way.”

Additional research will be needed to learn more about exactly what is happening in this very active region of space, and what it might mean for the future of these Magellanic clouds.

It may look like just a fuzzy dot of light to us, but there is a lot going on.

If you thought that was interesting, you might like to read about a second giant hole has opened up on the sun’s surface. Here’s what it means.