Theos-Talk Archives (January 2006 Message tt00170)

I have just received this from another group and I was wondering 
anyone would have an explanation for this?
Cass


Sloan Digital Sky Survey Reveals A New Milky Way Neighbor
(Sloan Digital Sky Survey, 1/9/2006)

A huge but very faint structure, containing hundreds of thousands of
stars spread over an area nearly 5,000 times the size of a full
moon, has been discovered and mapped by astronomers of the Sloan
Digital Sky Survey (SDSS-II).

At an estimated distance of 30,000 light years (10 kiloparsecs) from
Earth, the structure lies well within the confines of the Milky Way
Galaxy. However, it does not follow any of Milky Way's three main
components: a flattened disk of stars in which the sun resides, a
bulge of stars at the center of the Galaxy and an extended, roughly
spherical, stellar halo. Instead, the researchers believe that the
most likely interpretation of the new structure is a dwarf galaxy
that is merging into the Milky Way.