AM1054: Stars Form as Galaxies Collide

When galaxies collide, how many stars are born? For AM1054-325, featured here in a recently released image by the Hubble Space Telescope , the answer is millions. Instead of stars being destroyed as galaxy AM1054-325 and a nearby galaxy circle each other , their gravity and motion has ignited stellar creation . Star formation occurs rapidly in the gaseous debris stretching from AM1054-325 's yellowish body due to the other galaxy's gravitational pull. Hydrogen gas surrounding newborn stars glows pink . Bright infant stars shine blue and cluster together in compact nurseries of thousands to millions of stars . AM1054-325 possesses over 100 of these intense-blue, dot-like star clusters , some appearing like a string of pearls . Analyzing ultraviolet light helped determine that most of these stars are less than 10 million years old: stellar babies . Many of these nurseries may grow up to be globular star clusters , while the bundle of young stars at the bottom tip may even detach and form a small galaxy .