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Milky Way strands

A multi-colored image shows long vertical streaks of magnetic filaments in the Milky Way’s core.
A multi-colored image shows long vertical streaks of magnetic filaments in the Milky Way’s core. Image: Northwestern University/SAORO/Oxford University

A mosaic image by the MeerKAT radio telescope in South Africa revealed nearly 1,000 multi-light-year-long strands of cosmic ray particles in the center of the Milky Way. The strands have been known about for several decades, but researchers didn’t know there were so many.