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Galaxy filament

 

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Galaxy filament



 
 
In physical cosmology
Physical cosmology

Physical cosmology, as a branch of astronomy, is the study of the largest-scale structures and dynamics of our universe and is concerned with fundamental questions about its formation and evolution....
, filaments are the largest known structures in the universe
Universe

The universe is defined as everything that physically exists: the entirety of space and time, all forms of matter, energy and momentum, and the physical laws and physical constants that govern them....
, thread-like structures with a typical length of 50 to 80 h-1 megaparsec
Parsec

The parsec is a units of measurement of astronomical units of length, equal to just under 31 orders_of_magnitude_#1012 kilometres , or about 3.26 light-years....
s that form the boundaries between large voids
Void (astronomy)

In astronomy, voids are the empty spaces between galaxy filament, the largest-scale structures in the Universe, that contain very few, or no, galaxies....
 in the universe. Filaments consist of gravitationally-bound galaxies
Galaxy

A galaxy is a massive, gravitation system that consists of stars and stellar remnants, an interstellar medium of gas and cosmic dust, and an important but poorly-understood component tentatively dubbed dark matter....
; parts where a large number of galaxies are very close to each other are called superclusters.

In 2006, scientists announced the discovery of three filaments aligned to form the largest structure known to humankind, composed of densely-packed galaxies and enormous blobs of gas known as Lyman alpha blobs.

ment subtype of filaments have roughly similar major and minor axes in cross-section, along the lengthwise axis.

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Filaments of Galaxies
Filament Date Mean Distance Dimension Notes
Coma Filament    The Coma Supercluster
Coma Supercluster

The Coma Supercluster is a nearby supercluster of galaxies comprising the Coma Cluster and the Leo Cluster . Located 300 million light-years from Earth, it is in the center of the Great Wall ....
 lies within the Coma Filament.






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Encyclopedia


In physical cosmology
Physical cosmology

Physical cosmology, as a branch of astronomy, is the study of the largest-scale structures and dynamics of our universe and is concerned with fundamental questions about its formation and evolution....
, filaments are the largest known structures in the universe
Universe

The universe is defined as everything that physically exists: the entirety of space and time, all forms of matter, energy and momentum, and the physical laws and physical constants that govern them....
, thread-like structures with a typical length of 50 to 80 h-1 megaparsec
Parsec

The parsec is a units of measurement of astronomical units of length, equal to just under 31 orders_of_magnitude_#1012 kilometres , or about 3.26 light-years....
s that form the boundaries between large voids
Void (astronomy)

In astronomy, voids are the empty spaces between galaxy filament, the largest-scale structures in the Universe, that contain very few, or no, galaxies....
 in the universe. Filaments consist of gravitationally-bound galaxies
Galaxy

A galaxy is a massive, gravitation system that consists of stars and stellar remnants, an interstellar medium of gas and cosmic dust, and an important but poorly-understood component tentatively dubbed dark matter....
; parts where a large number of galaxies are very close to each other are called superclusters.

In 2006, scientists announced the discovery of three filaments aligned to form the largest structure known to humankind, composed of densely-packed galaxies and enormous blobs of gas known as Lyman alpha blobs.

List


Filaments

Filament subtype of filaments have roughly similar major and minor axes in cross-section, along the lengthwise axis.

Filaments of Galaxies
Filament Date Mean Distance Dimension Notes
Coma Filament    The Coma Supercluster
Coma Supercluster

The Coma Supercluster is a nearby supercluster of galaxies comprising the Coma Cluster and the Leo Cluster . Located 300 million light-years from Earth, it is in the center of the Great Wall ....
 lies within the Coma Filament. It forms part of the CfA2 Great Wall.
Perseus-Pegasus Filament 1985   Connected to the Pisces-Cetus Supercluster, with the Perseus-Pisces Supercluster
Perseus-Pisces Supercluster

The Perseus-Pisces Supercluster is one of the largest known structures in the universe. Even at a distance of 250 million light-years, this chain of galaxy clusters extends more than 40? across the northern winter sky....
 being a member of the filament.
Ursa Major Filament    Connected to the CfA Homunculus, a portion of the filament forms a portion of the "leg" of the Homunculus.
Lynx-Ursa Major Filament (LUM Filament) 1999 from 2000km/s to 8000km/s in redshift space  Connected to and separate from the Lynx-Ursa Major Supercluster.
z=2.38 filament around protocluster ClG J2143-4423 2004 z=2.38 110Mpc A filament the length of the Great Wall was discovered in 2004. As of 2008, it was still the largest structure beyond redshift 2.


Galaxy walls

The Galaxy wall subtype of filaments have a significantly greater major axis than minor axis in cross-section, along the lengthwise axis.

Walls of Galaxies
Wall Date Mean Distance Dimension Notes
CfA2 Great Wall (Coma Wall, Great Wall
Great Wall (astronomy)

The Great Wall , sometimes specifically referred to as the CfA2 Great Wall, is the second largest known Large-scale structure of the cosmos in the Universe ....
, Northern Great Wall, Great Northern Wall, CfA Great Wall)
1989 z=0.03058 251Mpc long
750 Mly long
250 Mly wide
20 Mly thick
This was the first super-large large-scale structure or pseudo-structure in the universe to be discovered. It is also the second largest. The CfA Homunculus lies at the heart of the Great Wall, and the Coma Supercluster
Coma Supercluster

The Coma Supercluster is a nearby supercluster of galaxies comprising the Coma Cluster and the Leo Cluster . Located 300 million light-years from Earth, it is in the center of the Great Wall ....
 forms most of the homunculus structure. The Coma Cluster lies at the core.
Sloan Great Wall
Sloan Great Wall

The Sloan Great Wall is a giant wall of galaxies, a galactic filament, which is the largest known structure in the Universe. Its discovery was announced on October 20, 2003 by J....
 (SDSS Great Wall)
2005 z=0.07804 433Mpc long This is the largest known structure or pseudo-structure in the universe discovered so far.
Sculptor Wall (Southern Great Wall, Great Southern Wall, Southern Wall)   8000km/s long
5000km/s wide
1000km/s deep
(in redshift space dimensions)
The Sculptor Wall is "parallel" to the Fornax Wall and "perpendicular" to the Grus Wall.
Grus Wall    The Grus Wall is "perpendicular" to the Fornax and Sculptor Walls.
Fornax Wall    The Fornax Cluster
Fornax Cluster

At a distance of approximately 62.0 light-year , the Fornax Cluster is the second richest galaxy cluster within 100 million light-years, although it is much smaller than the Virgo Cluster....
 is part of this wall. The wall is "parallel" to the Sculptor Wall and "perpendicular" to the Grus Wall.


  • A Centaurus Wall or Centaurus Great Wall has been proposed, and would have the Fornax Wall as a portion of it, visually created by the Zone of Avoidance
    Zone of Avoidance

    The Zone of Avoidance is the area of the night sky that is obscured by our own galaxy, the Milky Way....
    . It would also include the Centaurus Supercluster and the Local Supercluster, (this would then be the Local Wall or Local Great Wall)


  • A wall has been proposed to be the physical embodiment of the Great Attractor
    Great Attractor

    The Great Attractor is a gravity anomaly in intergalactic space within the range of the Centaurus Supercluster that reveals the existence of a localised concentration of mass equivalent to tens of thousands of Milky Ways, observable by its effect on the motion of galaxies and their associated clusters over a region hundreds of millions of li...
    , with the Norma Cluster
    Norma cluster

    The Norma Cluster is a rich galaxy groups and clusters of galaxy located near the center of the Great Attractor. Although it is both nearby and bright, it is located in the zone of avoidance, a region that is difficult to observe near the Galactic plane of the Milky Way....
     as part of this wall. This wall is also referred to as the Great Attractor Wall or Norma Wall.


  • A wall has been proposed, in 2000, to lie at z=1.47 in the vicinity of radio galaxy B3 0003+387.


  • A wall has been proposed, in 2000, to lie at z=0.559 in the northern Hubble Deep Field
    Hubble Deep Field

    The Hubble Deep Field is an image of a small region in the constellation Ursa Major, constructed from a series of observations by the Hubble Space Telescope....
     (HDF North).


Map of nearest galaxy walls


Maps of large scale distribution





See also

  • Galaxy
    Galaxy

    A galaxy is a massive, gravitation system that consists of stars and stellar remnants, an interstellar medium of gas and cosmic dust, and an important but poorly-understood component tentatively dubbed dark matter....
  • Galaxy clusters
  • Galaxy superclusters
  • List of galaxy clusters
    List of galaxy clusters

    This page lists some of the more interesting galaxy clusters and groups.Defining the limits of galaxy clusters is imprecise as many clusters are still forming....
  • List of galaxies
    List of galaxies

    This is a list of notable galaxy....
  • List of galaxy superclusters
  • Large-scale structure of the universe
  • Void (astronomy)
    Void (astronomy)

    In astronomy, voids are the empty spaces between galaxy filament, the largest-scale structures in the Universe, that contain very few, or no, galaxies....


Further reading

  • arXiv, , Kevin A. Pimbblet, 14 March 2005


External links

  • Astronomical Institute / Utrecht University - (Dr Louis Strous)
  • Astronomical Institute / Utrecht University - (Dr Louis Strous)