Newly Discovered Distant Galaxy Named 'CR7' in Tribute to Cristiano Ronaldo

CR7 is out of this world—literally.

Yes, believe it or not, but a whole galaxy has been named after Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo. 

The New York Times revealed details of the new galaxy in an article where most of the content is far too complex for our tiny brains, but they say that CR7 is "a recently discovered galaxy that existed when the universe was only about 800 million years old" and "is three times as luminous as any previously found from that time."

"

Humanity May Have Just Discovered The Universe’s Oldest Stars In Galaxy CR7 http://t.co/1mtb24QoQS pic.twitter.com/WV4ExExd1x

— Pixable (@pixable) June 17, 2015"

It has been named Galaxy CR7 for two reasons.

1. It is "short for Cosmos Redshift 7, after the method by which distant objects in the universe are dated." (obviously!)

and...

2. It is "inspired by the great Portuguese soccer player Cristiano Ronaldo, aka CR7."

So there you go.

No surprise that the University of Lisbon has been heavily involved in its discovery. 

So Ronaldo now has the Ballon d'Or and a galaxy. Your move, Leo Messi. 

[New York Times]