Andromeda Orbit Forecast: 5 in

Andromeda Orbit Forecast: 5 in 10 to 9 in 10 (30 s)

Will Andromeda really hit the Milky Way? Glowing comet-trail orbit paths show the 2025 Hubble and Gaia estimate of about five in ten, mark the two smaller galaxies that tug on the result, then redraw the bundle with newer 2026 Gaia data until about nine in ten paths end in a merger. The paths are illustrative, based on the published odds. Script, art direction, fact-check and QA by me; animation is code-driven (AI-assisted Python); galaxy textures are real ESO photos used as stand-ins.

Credit: ESO NGC 1232 / M83 stand-ins, CC BY 4.0

Data Visualization · Motion Graphics · Python · Science Communication