A college student's research may offer answers to how galaxies evolve. While studying at the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, Maryland, Katherine Whitaker realized that distant galaxies exhibited features that were not present in nearby galaxies. By comparing the two, Whitaker was able to surmise that the changes seen in more distant galaxies must have happened over time, meaning they evolved over time. This realization offers potential insights into the evolutionary processes that shape galaxies.