How Hubble is Shedding Light on RAM Pressure Stripping in Galaxy JW100
Recently, astronomers have made a remarkable discovery with the Hubble Space Telescope – they have found evidence of a galaxy that is being stripped of its gas by a process known as ram pressure. Dubbed JW100, this is the first time that a galaxy has been observed to be undergoing this process.
Ram pressure occurs when a galaxy moves through a hot medium, like the intracluster medium of a galaxy cluster. As the galaxy moves, the hot medium exerts pressure on the gas in the galaxy and strips it away. This in turn causes the galaxy to rapidly lose its fuel for star formation and can even cause it to completely lose its spiral structure.
This new finding provides a unique opportunity for astronomers to study ram pressure in action. By observing this process, the researchers hope to gain a better understanding of how galaxies evolve over time. They also hope to gain insights into how galaxies interact with their environments, which could help us to better understand the formation and evolution of galaxies.
source: Phys.org