13.6: The Ages of Galaxies and What that Reveals
- Page ID
- 93930
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A 2010 study suggests that several large and seemingly disparate chunks of the galaxy formed at the same time from the collapse of a single blob of gas and dust.
![This graphic shows the evolutionary sequence in the growth of massive elliptical galaxies over 13 billion years, as gleaned from space-based and ground-based telescopic observations. The growth of this class of galaxies is quickly driven by rapid star formation and mergers with other galaxies.](https://phys.libretexts.org/@api/deki/files/52494/figure-237-ellipticalGalaxies.jpg?revision=1)
What type of galaxy formed first?
What we currently see as Elliptical Galaxies with reddish stars. Think about stellar color as an indicator of age. And think back to globular clusters as a retirement home for stars – red stars.
- Provided by: Florida State College at Jacksonville. License: CC BY: Attribution