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What is a dwarf galaxy?

Galaxy Fundamentals Read more from
Chapter Galaxies

Dwarf galaxies, as the name suggests, are galaxies that have the least mass and fewest stars. The Large Magellanic Cloud, a galaxy that orbits the Milky Way, is considered a large dwarf galaxy; it contains, at most, about one billion stars. Like larger galaxies, dwarf galaxies come in many forms, including dwarf ellipticals, dwarf spheroidals, and dwarf irregulars.

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