Astronomers name newly discovered galaxy after Cristiano Ronaldo

BY EXTRA MUSTARD
Posted: Wed Jun. 17, 2015 4:00PM

Photo: Jonathan Nackstrand/AFP/Getty Images



Cristiano Ronaldo (aka CR7) is a star player for Real Madrid. The CR7 galaxy is a collection of millions of stars.

Astronomers recently discovered the galaxy and named it Cosmos Redshift 7 after the method used to date distant objects of the universe. But the name is also a nod to Ronaldo, because the lead astronomer is from the University of Lisbon in Ronaldo's native Portugal.

Just as Ronaldo stands out on the field, the galaxy is also pretty impressive. CR7 was formed just 800 million years after the Big Bang, meaning its light has been traveling to Earth for 12.9 billion years. It is “an exceptionally rare object, by far the brightest galaxy ever observed at this stage in the Universe,” the brightest galaxy ever observed at this stage in the Universe,” the European Southern Observatory said in a press release.

Cosmos Redshift 7 isn't the first CR7 galaxy, though. Nike released soccer cleats with that same name in 2013.


Source : http://www.si.com/extra-mustard/2015/06/17/cristiano-ronaldo-real-madrid-galaxy-name