Billions of years from now, only one of these two galaxies will remain. Until then, spiral galaxies NGC 2207 and IC 2163 will slowly pull each other apart, creating tides of matter, sheets of shocked gas, lanes of dark dust, bursts of star formation, and streams of cast-away stars. The featured image in scientifically assigned colors is a composite of Hubble exposures in visible light and Webb exposures in infrared light. Astronomers predict that NGC 2207, the larger galaxy on the right, will eventually incorporate IC 2163, the smaller galaxy on the left. In the most recent encounter that about peaked 40 million years ago, the smaller galaxy is swinging around counter-clockwise and is now slightly behind the larger galaxy. The space between stars is so vast that when galaxies collide, the stars in them usually do not collide.
myfusimotors
Why is a science blog named after a motor neuron? Fair question. If you landed here expecting car parts or motor repairs, I'm sorry...and also, stay. You might find something more interesting. Fusimotor neurons are a type of nerve cell in your body right now, quietly doing one of the most elegant jobs in neuroscience. They don't move your muscles directly. Instead, they adjust the sensitivity of your muscle spindles — the tiny stretch receptors embedded in your muscle fibers. In plain terms: they set the dial on how aware your nervous system is of its own body. They are the hidden calibrators of human movement, and almost nobody knows they exist. That's exactly why I named this blog after them. The best science isn't always the most famous science. Some of the most fascinating things happening inside the human body — inside your body — are invisible, unnamed, and completely overlooked. This blog exists to change that. I am a collection of water, calcium and organic molecules, but not a single one of the cells that compose me knows who I am, or cares...So why should you? Maybe because the story of what we are is more interesting than the story of who we are. That's what this blog is about. New posts go up every Tuesday and Friday. No newsletters, no algorithms — just good science writing, when you come looking for it. If you're curious about a topic, feel free to reach out. Some of my best posts have started with a reader's question. Welcome to myfusimotors. The hidden calibrators sent me. Corina.
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