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I find it amazing it takes 7 bya for two close galaxies to merge, only twice as long as the entire life of the universe to date. It feels like we are just at th
by yummybear 5y ago
I find it amazing it takes 7 bya for two close galaxies to merge, only twice as long as the entire life of the universe to date. It feels like we are just at the beginning of time.
- zmgsabst 5y ago
- prox 5y agoI believe we are. I think cosmically we just left the starting blocks compared to a slow heat death that will take place eventually. Maybe someone knows the stats for that eventuality.
- antonvs 5y agoNitpick, "bya" means "billion years ago", probably not what you meant. Abbreviations for "billion years" include Gy (gigayear), Ga (giga-annum), and "byr" (less common in my experience.)
- Zobat 5y agoAlso kind of nitpicking, the universe is about 13.8 Gy so 7 Gy would be half the age of the universe and not quite double the age of earth (~4.5 Gy).
- Aachen 5y agoI've most commonly seen a for year, so Ga for a billion years. Not sure who'd standardize this, does the SI have a guideline or standard for years? Either way, ya is indeed confusing.