Latest news with #Serpens-CoronaBorealis
Yahoo
09-03-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Scientists Intrigued by Galactic Structure That's 1.4 Billion Light-Years Wide
Scientists say they've uncovered the "largest known galactic structure" — a cosmic monster that spans a mind-boggling 1.4 billion light-years, which is around 14,000 times the diameter of our own Milky Way galaxy. The team, led by scientists from the Max Planck Institute for Physics, made the discovery after analyzing data as part of the ROSAT X-ray satellite sky survey. They found that the structure — dubbed "Quipu" after strings with knots used by the Incas for bookkeeping — stretched across huge swathes of the night sky. The team believes it's largely composed of dark matter, the invisible substance believed to account for 85 percent of all mass in the universe. The finding could have considerable implications for our understanding of the larger structures lurking in the universe and how to accurately map them. "If you look at the distribution of the galaxy clusters in the sky in a spherical shell with a distance of 416 to 826 million light-years, you immediately notice a huge structure that stretches from high northern latitudes to almost the southern end of the sky," said project lead and Max Planck Institute associate professor Hans Böhringer in a statement. Quipu's immense length appears to break the previous record set by the "Sloan Great Wall," which stretches around 1.1 billion light years in a much more distant part of the universe. But as Live Science points out, there might be even larger structures still, such as the Hercules Corona-Borealis Great Wall, a superstructure that spans an estimated 10 billion light-years across, another 10 billion light-years from Earth. Whether it indeed exists, however, remains a topic of contention among scientists. For their latest study, accepted for publication in the journal Astronomy and Astrophysics, the Max Planck team analyzed an expansive catalogue of galaxy clusters, which was created using data collected by the Max Planck Institute for extraterrestrial Physics' ROSAT X-ray satellite in 1990. Apart from Quipu, the team also discovered three other superstructures they're calling the Serpens-Corona Borealis, the Hercules, and the Sculptor-Pegasus. In addition to Quipu and the Shapley supercluster, a concentration of galaxies in our nearby universe, the five structures contain an estimated 25 percent of all the matter in the observable universe, according to the researchers, or 13 percent of its volume. The team argued in its paper that the findings could be "important for astrophysical research," such as the "study of the environmental dependence of galaxy evolution as well as for precision tests of cosmological models." The researchers also suggest these superstructures won't stick around forever. "In the future cosmic evolution, these superstructures are bound to break up into several collapsing units," they concluded in their paper. "They are thus transient configurations. But at present they are special physical entities with characteristic properties and special cosmic environments deserving special attention." More on superstructures: Scientists Working to Explain "Superstructures" on Ocean Floor
Yahoo
22-02-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Astronomers discover 'Quipu,' the single largest structure in the known universe
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Astronomers have discovered what may be the largest-scale structure in the known universe — a group of galaxy clusters and clusters of galaxy clusters that spans roughly 1.3 billion light-years across and contains a mind-boggling 200 quadrillion solar masses. The newfound structure is dubbed Quipu after an Incan system of counting and storing numbers using knots on cords. Like a Quipu cord, the structure is complex, made up of one long filament and multiple side filaments. It spans roughly 1.3 billion light-years (more than 13,000 times the length of the Milky Way), potentially making it the largest object in the universe in terms of length, beating out previous record-holders such as the Laniākea supercluster. The discovery was shared in a new paper posted on the preprint website ArXiv on Jan. 31. (The paper has not yet been published in a peer reviewed journal, but has been accepted by the journal Astronomy and Astrophysics.) "Quipu is actually a prominent structure readily noticeable by eye in a sky map of clusters in the target redshift range, without the help of a detection method," the team wrote in the paper. Related: James Webb Space Telescope smashes its own record to find the earliest galaxies that ever existed The research is part of a long-running effort to map the matter distribution of the universe at different wavelengths of light. Distant structures in the universe show a shift in their wavelengths toward the red part of the electromagnetic spectrum, a phenomenon known as redshift. While objects with a redshift of up to 0.3 have been well-mapped, the researchers focused the new study on redshifts of 0.3 to 0.6. The greater the redshift, the more distant the objects. The structures reported in the new study were all detected between roughly 425 million and 815 million light-years from Earth. Prior studies suggest that even larger structures exist deeper into the cosmos. The current contender for the largest structure in the universe is the Hercules Corona-Borealis Great Wall, a mysterious concentration of matter located roughly 10 billion light-years from Earth, and spanning an estimated 10 billion light-years across. However, the Great Wall's existence remains disputed. Quipu was the largest superstructure the researchers discovered in their datasets, but they also found four more giant structures. The smallest, the Shapley supercluster, was previously known as the largest superstructure ever discovered. It's now been eclipsed by Quipu, plus three others: The Serpens-Corona Borealis superstructure, the Hercules supercluster, and the Sculptor-Pegasus superstructure, which stretches between the two constellations that give it its name. Together, these five superstructures contain 45% of the galaxy clusters, 30% of the galaxies and 25% of the matter in the observable universe, the researchers reported in the paper. In total, they make up 13% of the universe's volume. The researchers also detected the ways that this matter affects the overall environment in the universe. The superstructures affect the cosmic microwave background (CMB), the microwave radiation left over from the Big Bang that's found uniformly across space. The researchers also discovered that the local velocity of these streams of galaxies affects measurements of the universe's overall expansion: Where the superstructures reign, the local expansion of galaxies can distort the measurement of the overall universe's expansion, known as the Hubble constant. Finally, the gravitational pull of so much matter can cause a bending of light known as gravitational lensing, which could distort images of the distant sky. RELATED STORIES —5 fascinating facts about the Big Bang, the theory that defines the history of the universe —The universe is expanding too fast for physics to explain —A cosmic 'CT scan' shows the universe is far more complex than expected Future research could examine how these large-scale structures have affected the evolution of galaxies, the researchers wrote. Though the structures are only temporary — the universe is always expanding, slowly pulling clusters apart — their sheer size makes them important. "In the future cosmic evolution, these superstructures are bound to break up into several collapsing units," the researchers wrote. "They are thus transient configurations. But at present they are special physical entities with characteristic properties and special cosmic environments deserving special attention."
Yahoo
10-02-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Largest structure in known universe discovered, 13,000 times longer than Milky Way
Astronomers have identified what could be the largest structure ever observed in the known universe—a vast network of galaxy clusters and superclusters containing an astonishing 200 quadrillion solar masses. Named Quipu, the structure takes inspiration from the ancient Incan system of recording numbers using knotted cords. Much like a Quipu cord, the structure is intricate, consisting of a central filament with multiple branching strands. Spanning approximately 1.3 billion light-years—over 13,000 times the length of the Milky Way—it may be the longest known structure in the universe, surpassing previous record-holders like the Laniākea supercluster. According to the scientific team which made the discovery, Quipu stands out as a highly prominent structure that is easily visible in a sky map of galaxy clusters within the target redshift range, even without specialized detection methods. The research is part of an ongoing effort to map the universe's matter distribution across different wavelengths of light. Distant cosmic structures appear shifted toward the red part of the spectrum, a phenomenon called redshift. While objects with a redshift up to 0.3 are well-mapped, this study focuses on those between 0.3 and 0.6—meaning even farther away. The largest superstructure discovered in the researchers' datasets was Quipu, but they also found four other massive structures. The Shapley supercluster, once considered the largest, has now been overtaken by Quipu and three others: the Serpens-Corona Borealis superstructure, the Hercules supercluster, and the Sculptor-Pegasus superstructure, which stretches between the two constellations. The structures in the new study were found between 425 million and 815 million light-years from Earth. Previous research suggests that even larger structures may exist farther out in the universe. Currently, the Hercules Corona-Borealis Great Wall, a massive concentration of matter about 10 billion light-years away, holds the title for the largest known structure, though its existence is still debated. Researchers also observed how these superstructures influence the broader universe. They affect the cosmic microwave background (CMB), the radiation leftover from the Big Bang, which is spread evenly across space. The team found that the velocity of galaxy streams in these superstructures can distort measurements of the universe's expansion, known as the Hubble constant. Additionally, the immense gravitational pull of these structures can cause gravitational lensing, bending light and distorting distant sky images. The study noted that future research could explore how these large-scale structures have influenced galaxy evolution. While these structures are temporary, as the universe's expansion gradually pulls clusters apart, their immense size makes them significant. "In the future cosmic evolution, these superstructures are bound to break up into several collapsing units. They are thus transient configurations. But at present they are special physical entities with characteristic properties and special cosmic environments deserving special attention," the researchers observed. Thus, the five superstructures also account for 45% of the galaxy clusters, 30% of the galaxies, and 25% of the matter in the observable universe, making up 13% of the universe's total volume. The study has been published in the open-access pre-print website arXiv.
