Galaxy named after Cristiano Ronaldo

Ronaldo An artist’s impression of what the CR7 galaxy looks like

For Cristiano Ronaldo, being named the FIFA World Player of the Year three times may be the highest point in his career as a footballer. But having a galaxy named after him is literally our of this world. Ronaldo himself possesses skills that are out-of-this-worldly outrageous.

Real Madrid’s Portuguese ace has had his name given to a galaxy which houses a cluster of stars thought to have provided conditions pivotal for life to flourish.

The CR7 galaxy – recently discovered by astronomers – is said to have existed when the universe was only 800 million years old – some 13 billion years ago.

The stars of CR7 “ultimately allowed us all to be here by fabricating heavy elements and changing the composition of the universe,” according to Dr David Sobral of the University of Lisbon.

Sobral, who led a group of astronomers in discovering CR7, confirmed its name was inspired by Ronaldo and the name of the method used to date distant objects in the universe – Cosmic Redshift 7.

Real Madrid star Ronaldo, who adopts the mantle CR7 because of his initials and shirt number, won Fifa’s Ballon d’Or award in 2013 and 2014 and scored a staggering 66 goals this season.

The former Manchester United has never been short on confidence but it turns out he has been so much more than a star for so long.