Scientists find record-breaking collection of molecules in 2 extremely ancient galaxies

Several giant satellite dishes stand scattered in a vast rolling field, pointed toward the night sky and an array of stars next to the arm of the milky way.

A treasure trove of molecules has turned up in two galaxies that we see as they were over 12 billion years ago, revealing information about how the ancient realms form stars.

One of the distant galaxies, APM 08279+5255, is home to a quasar — an active supermassive black hole at its core swallowing huge amounts of gas — while the other galaxy, NCv1.143, is a more "normal" galaxy. Both, however, are seen to be forming stars at a ferocious rate, hundreds of times more stars than the Milky Way galaxy is currently generating.