Astronomers are now using these predictions as benchmarks for new observations, aiming to confirm the existence of these hidden galaxies and deepen our understanding of cosmic formation.

Scientists at Durham University have used advanced supercomputer simulations to propose that there could be up to 100 previously undetected dwarf galaxies, known as 'ghost galaxies,' orbiting the Milky Way.

The National Astronomy Meeting 2025 at Durham University, which attracts nearly a thousand astronomers, showcased this groundbreaking research on ghost galaxies.

Presented at the Royal Astronomical Society's National Astronomy Meeting in July 2025, these findings could significantly bolster the LCDM model of galaxy formation and the universe's structure.

The study was funded by the European Research Council and the Science and Technology Facilities Council, utilizing the high-performance Cosmology Machine supercomputer at Durham for their simulations.

Lead researcher Dr. Isabel Santos-Santos emphasizes that discovering these missing galaxies would provide vital insights into the universe's formation and evolution.

This research also relates to how dark matter halos interact and could reveal more about the hierarchical process of galaxy formation within the universe.

The team employed a novel technique to detect faint dark matter halos that might host these orphaned satellite galaxies, offering clues about their abundance and distribution.

Discovering additional faint galaxies would strengthen the evidence for the LCDM model and shed light on the universe's large-scale structure.

The upcoming Legacy Survey of Space and Time by the Vera Rubin Observatory is expected to help locate these elusive satellites, potentially within 30 kiloparsecs of the Milky Way.

This research supports the Lambda Cold Dark Matter (LCDM) theory, which predicts that the Milky Way should have many more satellite galaxies than the roughly 60 confirmed so far, including the Magellanic Clouds.

Durham cosmologist Carlos Frenk highlighted that finding these faint satellites would validate the LCDM theory and demonstrate the power of new telescope technologies.