Ultrafast cosmic cloud discovered in the Milky Way

Astronomers have discovered a cloud moving at ultra-high speed in the Milky Way galaxy. Inside it was a complex and dynamic filamentary network, reports Mir24.

The object was named G165. It is a massive cloud of atomic oxygen, flying at a speed of about 300 kilometers per second. The object is located at a distance of 50 thousand light years from Earth, much higher than the plane of the galaxy. By studying it, scientists hope to better understand the features of the early stages of interstellar cloud formation.

Observations showed that G165 consists predominantly of a warm neutral medium with a small amount of cold component. The cloud was filled with a network of filaments that formed a web-like pattern. The filaments intersected and twisted in space, creating a three-dimensional gas lattice with clear signs of turbulence.

To investigate the physical processes underlying this phenomenon, scientists conducted computer modeling. The results showed that the filaments were caused by supersonic turbulence together with magnetic fields. These features appear without the participation of gravitational forces, reports Nature Astronomy.

The discovery helped to better understand how atomic gas behaves in quiet, remote parts of the galaxy. Subsequently, this gas enters star-forming regions and is involved in the birth of new stars.