This enabled the calculation of the likely past orbit of the Large and the Small Magellanic Cloud in relation to the Milky Way.

The calculation necessitated large assumptions, for example, on the shapes and masses of the 3 galaxies, and the nature of dynamical friction between the moving objects.

Just like tides on Earth are induced by the gravity of the 'leading' Moon, the models predicted two directions opposite each other, in which particles are preferentially pulled.

In 1998 a study analysing the full sky survey made by the HIPASS team at Parkes Observatory generated important new observational data.

Most recent models increasingly include drag from the halo of the Milky Way as well as gas dynamics, star formation and chemical evolution.

It is thought that the tidal forces mostly affect the Small Magellanic Cloud, since it has lower mass, and is less gravitationally bound.

In contrast, ram pressure stripping mostly affects the Large Magellanic Cloud, because it has a larger reservoir of gas.

[5] At the January 2010 meeting of the American Astronomical Society, David Nidever of the University of Virginia announced new results based on data derived from the National Science Foundation's Robert C. Byrd Green Bank Telescope and earlier radio astronomy observations.