A group of scientists says it has discovered how galaxies have been forming since the Big Bang.

A team led by Professor Yoon Suk-jin at the Department of Astronomy of Yonsei University said Friday that its studies had found that an elliptical galaxy is a cluster made up of galaxies of various forms and sizes.

The new theory seeks to overturn the existing view that an elliptical galaxy is one formed by the amalgamation of two different spiral galaxies.

Yoon’s research team also says it discovered that galactic ages can be estimated by analyzing the color distribution of the cluster of stars that typically comprise a galaxy.

The findings were unveiled in a thesis published by renowned Science magazine on its website Friday.

Yoon’s team previously drew the attention of world astronomers four years ago when it disclosed the results of its research on the age of the Milky Way galaxy. Those findings were also published in Science and another British science magazine, Nature.