A galaxy has been named CR7 after Real Madrid forward Cristiano Ronaldo

Cristiano Ronaldo is one of the great stars of world football and now one of the oldest and most crucial parts of our galaxy.

Real Madrid's Portuguese forward, whose play sometimes appears to be out of this world, 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.

An artist's impression of what the CR7 galaxy looks like

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.