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The Conversation
The Conversation
Deanne Fisher, Associate Professor of Astronomy, Swinburne University of Technology

New measurements reveal the enormous halos that shroud all galaxies in the universe

The starry part of every galaxy is surrounded by a vast shroud of gas extending out for more than 100,000 light years. Cristy Roberts / ANU / ASTRO 3D

Have you ever wanted to make a $150,000 gamble? If you’re right, you open a new window to the universe. But if you’re wrong, you’ve just wasted a lot of money and time.

That is exactly what my team did when we pointed the Keck telescope at Mauna Kea Observatory in Hawai'i at what looked like empty space, hoping to reveal the hidden gas that shrouds all galaxies in the universe. There were cheers in the control room when we realised our gamble had paid off.

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