click to enlarge

Courtesy of NASA/Swift Science Team/Stefan Immler

Triangulum Galaxy: An Unsolved Mystery

The Triangulum Galaxy is located nearly three million light years from Earth.

In a study that pushes the limits of observations currently possible from Earth, a team of NASA and European scientists has recorded the “fingerprints” of mystery molecules in the Triangulum Galaxy, as well as in the Andromeda Galaxy.

Figuring out exactly which molecules are leaving these clues, known as “diffuse interstellar bands” (DIBs), is a puzzle that initially seemed straightforward. However, it has remained unsolved for nearly a hundred years. The answer is expected to help explain how stars, planets and life form.