The Milky Way's disk is warped in shape, twisted like a frisbee bent by a child.
Harvard astronomers calculated the dark matter halo around the Milky Way likely has a football shape and tilt.
The tilted football-shaped dark matter halo matches the Milky Way's warped disk.
Though invisible, dark matter's gravity prevents galaxies like ours from flying apart when rotating quickly.
The Milky Way's dark matter halo stretches far beyond the halo of visible stars around the galactic disk.
The tilted shape implies the Milky Way merged with other galaxies during its evolution.
Studying the halo shape provides insights into the nature of dark matter particles.