Slashdot reported on May 16 that a new structure of the Milky Way galaxy has been discovered by astronomers: “Researchers are now suggesting that a newly discovered arm of the Milky Way Galaxy gives it a warped structure. Accumulated evidence leads them to claim that an 18 kpc long arm exists on the other side of the galaxy and this arm traverses some 50 degrees across our sky as an extension of the Scutum-Centaurus Arm (which is one of the two major arms of our galaxy, the other being the Perseus Armthat we can see much more clearly). The researchers conclude that this extension of the Scutum-Centaurus Arm is partially obscured behind the middle of our galaxy because our galaxy is warped “like the cap from a freshly-opened beer bottle.”” (eldavojohn, 2011).

See the Slashdot report here.

See the original  announcement from the Technology Review(c) here.

Reference:

eldavojohn. (2011). Slashdot.org. Discovered Arm of Milky Way Gives Warped Structure. Retrived May 16, 2011 from http://slashdot.org/submission/1587304/Discovered-Arm-of-Milky-Way-Gives-Warped-Structure