A study by astronomers at the University of Southampton is hoping to solve what they are calling an “intergalactic mystery” of how elliptical galaxies were created.

How these galaxies, which look similar to bulging footballs compared with the flat disc of the Milky Way, emerged, has been at the centre of research for decades.
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She said: “This is the first real evidence that spheroids form directly through intense episodes of star formation located in the cores of distant galaxies. Astrophysicists have sought to understand this process for decades.

“These galaxies form quickly – gas is sucked inwards to feed black holes and triggers bursts of stars, which are created at rates 10 to 100 times faster than our Milky Way.”

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2024/dec/05/scientists-close-to-solving-mystery-of-how-universes-giant-galaxies-formed