The main dishes to remember on the largest object in the universe
- The biggest objects in the universe are the clusters of galaxies, such as the SuperCluster in which we are currently living – and including Abell 370, which has been captured in a spatial spatial scoden sparkling by the Hubble space telescope in 2017.
- The biggest galaxies can extend over more than a million light years in diameter, according to NASA. Even greater than the clusters of galaxies are superclusters like Laniakea – although these superclusters tend to have lower gravitational attachments.
Galaxies clusters, like the one in which we live, have the potential to become the greatest objects in the universe.
In our vast cosmic district, we occupy a small grain on earth in the peripheral spiral arms of the Milky Way Galaxy. But our Milky Way is only a thousands of other galaxies constituting a colossal supercuster. This structure extends over hundreds of millions of light years, which scientists have nicknamed “Laniakea” or Hawaiian for “immense sky”.
Huge events are constantly occurring in the universe: scientists have seen supernovae, gamma ray shards and black holes colliding and sending undulations through space-time. But what about the biggest objects?
According to astrophysicist Alexei Filippenko, among the most gargantuan objects, such as the SuperCluster in which we live, according to the astrophysicist Alexei Filippenko, who is also an eminent teacher of astronomy at the University of California.
Learn more: CAUTION: Objects in the universe are larger than they appear
What is the biggest object in the universe?
In 2010, scientists determined that candidates for the greatest objects in the observable universe would be massive clusters of galaxies – including, at the time, Abell 370, which was captured in a sparkling spatial landscape by the Hubble space telescope in 2017.
“There are clusters of galaxies, which are large groups of galaxies that have thousands, even tens of thousands of galaxies. They could extend over a few million up to 10 million light years in diameter, ”explains Filippenko.
Although these bunches can contain hundreds to thousands of galaxies, they tend to constitute only a small fraction of the question in a cluster, according to the Harvard & Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. Enriching these galaxies is not only their mutual gravitational attraction, but also above all dark matter.
Dark Matter is a mysterious and invisible and attractive force which maintains these galaxies together, a force which exerts enough force to fold even the path of the passing light.
“We believe that there is six times more dark matter than visible material, and the same is true for the galaxies themselves,” explains Filippenko. “If it is only the visible stars that invented the [gravitational force]So these galaxies would not be linked together by gravity. But they are linked.
What is the size of the galaxies?
Although galaxies do not really include a majority of the space inside larger bunches, the galaxies themselves also contain a variety of cosmic ingredients: stars with planets and gas clouds with space dust.
The biggest galaxies can extend over more than a million light years in diameter, according to NASA. Even greater than the clusters of galaxies are superclusters like Laniakea – although these superclusters tend to have lower gravitational attachments.
Clusters formed over time
After the vicinity of the universe starting almost 14 billion years ago, the distribution of the material following the Big Bang was not uniform. Certain regions have been left denser than others, with certain tropodes spread over a larger strip of space. These too dense areas sowed the seeds for the formation of superclusters, billions of more years later, because they gradually collected the question necessary to develop.
“Over time, gravity – which can be considered this great sculptor of the universe – has made the dense regions densest, stealing equipment from the under -dense regions,” explains Filippenko. “Small Surnoons could collapse reasonably quickly.”
These clusters are distributed throughout the universe, including the constituent elements of larger cosmic structures and emitting light that astronomers can observe. But many more universes is, in fact, invisible, composed of exotic materials as an attractive black matter, then a repulsive black energy.
Why is 95% of the universe invisible?
One of the most important conclusions to shape astronomy in recent years is the discovery that the expansion of the universe does not slow down over time, but rather accelerating and at a growing pace.
Filippenko was a member of the two distinct teams of astronomers who made this winning discovery of the Nobel Prize, using the brightness of supernovae in the distance. Looking at the supernovae, which should issue certain light levels at their given distance, the researchers found that they were darker that they should have been where they were.
Based on these observations, scientists determined that the supernovae had traveled further than expected – which means that the fabric of the space that transported them should develop. As for what strength could be responsible for this phenomenon, dark energy has come into play.
“We are kept together by electromagnetic forces, and the earth and the sun are maintained together by gravity. But on the greatest distances, more than 10 million light years or more, the universe develops, ”explains Filippenko. “And it extends faster and faster because of this dark energy.”
Scientists currently believe that this mysterious dark energy is a substantial majority of the universe, causing an increase in space outside at an increasing pace over time.
Beyond looking at the supernovae, even the observation of the behavior of the superclusters seems to support this theory, added Filippenko. The space between the superclusters, and even in them, also seems to develop more than it should be. Although a certain expansion can be possible, without dark energy, such expansion would not be so drastic.
“The Superclusters are quite large, at 100 million light years, and sufficiently linked to gravity, that the expansion of the universe should transport them outside and extend them to a certain extent,” explains Filippenko. “But the black energy sufficient for these 100 million light years, which means that the SuperClusive are expanding faster than they would have done.”
Questions remain on dark energy and matter
Because dark matter and dark energy are completely invisible, scientists are still struggling with the problem of detecting them – and confirming their existence. A number of ideas exist for what they could be. Dark matter, for example, could be the remains of the elementary particles of the Big Bang, while dark energy could come from a kind of fundamental fundamental energy in space.
“It could be that these concepts of black energy and black matter are completely false,” explains Filippenko. “It’s conceivable, but they are the best we have at the moment as a physical explanation for what we see.”
While trying to confirm the existence of these evasive materials turns out to be a permanent challenge, Filippenko says that the pursuit of understanding these distant phenomena is precious in itself. Investigating the origins of the universe and what includes the fabric of the space on which we live could lead to other unforeseen discoveries-and in the meantime, he added, it is one of the most human things to do.
Learn more: What is the size of the observable universe?
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