Astronomers detect powerful shockwave from galaxy collision in Stephan's Quintet

Astronomers have detected a powerful shockwave from the galaxy NGC 7318b colliding with four neighboring galaxies in Stephan's Quintet. This event, traveling at 2 million mph, resembles a "sonic boom" and may provide insights into galaxy evolution. The collision created a shock front that energized surrounding plasma and gas, likely triggering new star formation. Researchers used the WEAVE spectrograph to analyze the debris and ionized gas trails from the impact. Stephan's Quintet, located 290 million light-years from Earth, is the first compact galaxy group discovered. The findings were published on November 22 in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.