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Galaxy Collision Simulation

Galaxy 1 (Blue)

Galaxy 2 (Orange)

Encounter

Controls

Time 0
Stars (total)

About

Galaxy collisions are remarkably common — the Milky Way will merge with Andromeda in ~4.5 Gyr. Despite galaxies being mostly empty space, tidal forces create spectacular structures: bridges, tidal tails, and ring galaxies. This N-body simulation uses a hierarchical tree algorithm concept: each galaxy nucleus exerts force F=GM₁M₂/r² on individual stars, while stars orbit their host nucleus.