Star Stream

A New Zealand astronomer has led the discovery of a new stream of stars in the Milky Way. Mary Williams from the Astrophysical Institute Potsdam (AIP) led an international team of astronomers in the hunt for this latest cosmic discovery. The stream of stars has been named the Aquarius Stream after the constellation Aquarius. The stream is the remnant of a smaller galaxy within our space neighbourhood which was torn apart by the gravitational pull of the Milky Way. Unlike almost all known star streams, the Aquarius Stream is located within the galactic disk and was blocked from view by the stars of the Milky Way. “It was right on our doorstep,” says Williams. “But we just couldn’t see it.”