Astronomers have long thought the Milky Way was destined to merge with the nearby Andromeda galaxy. The aftermath of this predicted clash has been dubbed “Milkomeda,” and researchers predicted it would happen in four or five billion years.

"The fact that there is only around a 50-50 chance of a merger was very surprising."

Astronomers have believed for decades that the Milky Way is on a collision course with our nearest big neighbor, Andromeda. They seemed all but certain the two galaxies were destined to smash in about 4 to 5 billion years, combining into one colossal galaxy in space .