Galaxy Simulation

An article at PhysicsWeb outlines the recent simulation of the galaxy performed at Japan's Earth Simulator supercomputer. It is the most detailed simulation of the galaxy's development ever performed, going from 300 million years after the Big Bang to the present day.

One intriguing outcome, which is buried at the end of the article, is that it turns out that if this simulation is correct then there's much more stability to the universe than expected. The simulation suggests that the Milky Way achieved its current state of chemical composition after about 1 billion years of development, instead of the 10 billion years that were previously believed. Supernovas and star formations appear to have done little to alter the composition of the galaxy.