Laniakea Supercluster
The Laniakea Supercluster is one of the largest known structures in the universe, encompassing the Milky Way galaxy, our home galaxy, along with hundreds of thousands of other galaxies. Here are some key details:
Discovery and Naming
- The supercluster was identified and named in 2014 by a team of astronomers led by R. Brent Tully from the University of Hawaii. The name Laniakea means "immense heaven" in Hawaiian, reflecting the vast scale of this cosmic structure.
- Before its official naming, the structure was known as the Great Attractor due to the gravitational pull it exerts on galaxies, including ours.
Physical Characteristics
Structure and Dynamics
Scientific Importance
- Understanding the structure and dynamics of superclusters like Laniakea helps in mapping the cosmic web, the large-scale structure of the universe.
- It also provides insights into the effects of gravity on large scales, dark matter distribution, and the expansion of the universe.
Research and Observations
- Observations for mapping Laniakea involved combining data from various surveys, including redshift measurements, to determine the velocities and distances of galaxies.
- Techniques like the Cosmicflows-2 catalog, which maps galaxy velocities, were instrumental in defining the boundaries of Laniakea.
Sources
Related Topics